Champion's Bane
by ArwynandCole
Summary: It's good to be a hero, a champion for right, but someone always wants to see you fall. Skalidor has picked up Acidicus' torch, his need for revenge on Cole. How best to curse the ninja leader? Hit him at his heart. **Story follows my "Turning-Points"** Rated T for violence, language, suggestive content. ColeXOC, Kai, Nya, Jay, Zane, Sensei, Lloyd, Skalidor
1. Subdual Of Sanctuary (SOS)

**A/N: The main idea for this was mostly written last winter and any resemblance to any other story is purely coincidental. Everything in here is out of my own stupid head. Except the Lego Ninjago bit. It's necessary to have read my book Turning-Points to understand some of this, i.e. that my OC is the Green Ninja, and Lloyd is a great little kid, and major plot points. IF YOU DON'T LIKE THAT, DON'T READ IT.  
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**This story begins about three weeks after TP ends. It is NOT going to have the light-heartedness that much of TP had. This WILL contain a dark theme with some violence and self-injurious behavior, which I AM NOT ADVOCATING, but it'll be part of the story. This is rated T. It will also be MUCH shorter than TP.  
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**Not to assume the reader doesn't get it, but just to clarify the meaning of the title, 'champion' is another word for 'knight', and everyone knows how often I referred to Cole as a knight (in shining armor, no less) in TP. A 'bane' is a curse.  
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**Hope everyone is doing well, and that you receive this story in kind. Lemme know. R&R!**

VILLAGE OF SANCTUARY, FOOTHILLS OF DAM NED CRAGGY RANGE

Landing hard on his shoulder, he hit the muddied, worn, wooden floor of the old inn's empty common-room with a grunt, and rolled a couple of times before coming to a stop on his fleshy paunch. Every bone in his middle-aged body protested the rough treatment, not used to anything worse than the occasional, jolting horseback ride to his mistress' home in the next village.

Blood ran from his nose and incised lip, a result of the blow he'd received in the square. Spitting the taste of copper from his mouth, the _soncho_ unsteadily pushed himself up from the floor to a half-sitting position.

The elected head of the village swiped a wet, trembling hand across the lower part of his face and lifted his eyes to the hulking monstrosity entering the building from outside. The grey-and-rainy light of day silhouetted the scaly, thickset object of his fear and loathing.

"Please! You've already ransacked our village _twice_ in the last six months! We have no more to give you in our stores! What _more_ do you want from us?" The imploring tone in the graying man's voice brought derisive hissing from the group of about two dozen raiders which gradually surrounded him as he sat on the floor.

"Yesss…You and your villagers _have_ been very generous with your goods. _Too_ generous to pass up again." Holding his golden staff in both hands, the black-and-orange Serpentine general examined it distractedly. "However, I _do_ have another reason for revisiting your lovely locale."

"I expect you'll want to call for outside help in dealing with our invasion." General Skalidor brought his white-spiked cranium lower to focus his ominous, yellow eyes on the cowering man. "In fact, I whole-heartedly encourage you to do so."

Vigorously moving his head to and fro in denial, the _soncho_ lamented, "We're too remote. No one ever comes to help except a few men from the nearest village, and they _won't _come _this _time."

"Hmm. It just so happens that a noble group of do-gooders is in the area, and I'm sure the bleeding hearts will be more than happy to rush to your aid." The reptilian chief reared up to his full height, towering over the submissive village leader. "This must be your lucky day. It will _certainly_ be mine."

_DESTINY'S BOUNTY_, FIFTEEN MILES AWAY

****Kai's POV**

Walking into the bridge at mid-morning, I could tell right away something was up with Nya. She stood at the prow-facing window, leaning on her elbows on the sill, cupping her chin in one hand, staring out into space. Nya _never_ just stood and stared.

Sauntering across the room, I joined her at the windowsill, mimicking her stance. "Hey, sis, whachadoin'?" Yanked from her thoughts, Nya left me at the window and went back to the small pile of nuts and bolts she'd obviously been messing around with at the table.

With her back to me, she stammered, "N-Nothing! Nothing at all. Just checking on the weather."

Through the window, I could see Jay swabbing the deck in the pouring rain under occasional flashes of lightning like he was _supposed _to have done _last_ week. He hadn't taken care of it _then_ since he was still milking the excuse of having a fractured leg to get out of anything he didn't like doing.

The walking boot had come off yesterday, and, given that there was no training scheduled, Cole had handed him the push broom this morning. Of course, being that it was an unpleasant chore, Jay had protested with a whine, "But it's _raining!"_

Cole had been stone-faced and pitiless. "You'll be conserving water. Get it done, or _I'll_ do the job with your _rear." _Understandably, Jay had decided that cleaning the deck in the rain was the pastime in which he wanted to indulge himself this morning.

Not long after that, I had finished my own chores a little sooner than expected, and went hunting for Cole to see if the taskmaster had anything else to pile on me before he caught me loitering.

A half-assed search of the ship had turned up nothing, and by the time I was midway down the below-deck corridor, I was feeling lazy. _"Co-ole!"_

Within seconds, he and Arwyn stepped out of the training room we had dedicated to meditation, tai chi, and yoga. She was running one hand through her hair and smoothing her jacket with the other.

Keeping a distance of several feet between them, Cole acted cool as a cat when he answered me, flipping his bangs off of his forehead with a shake of his head. "Wassup?" Between his cavalier attitude and the skittish way Arwyn glanced away from me, I got the feeling that something was a little off.

Leaning with a hand on the wall, the other on my hip, I carefully looked the pair over with a grin. "I'm done with my assignment. Just wondering if you have anything else to _dump_ on me this morning."

"Nah, you're good." Cole made a dismissive motion with his hand like he was trying to get rid of me. "Go do…whatever."

He didn't break under my scrutiny, but when I didn't move to leave or reply to him, I caught a hint of annoyance in his tone. "What?"

I had pinpointed the problem and loved letting him know I wasn't an idiot. "You know, if you can get Arwyn _out _of her shirt, maybe you should learn how to get her back _into _it. Can't you tell it's on _backwards?"_

The way he jerked his head over to Arwyn to confirm my observation was priceless. So was the way she sucked in a sharp breath and dashed back into the meditation room to correct her wardrobe malfunction.

"Thanks for _that_, bro." I could tell Cole didn't mean it from the blistering look I got before he ducked back into the room to ease Arwyn's humiliation and help her redress. Or to undress her again.

"Hey, any time, man! Glad I could be of help!" I laughed all the way up to the bridge about catching my teammates making out, but wondered how they intended to resist temptation if they were always flirting with it.

When I got to Nya, I completely forgot about Cole and Arwyn's amorous playing around after noticing how troubled my sister seemed. Following her from the window to the table, I started my wheedling. "C'mon, Nya. Something's up. What's wrong?"

"Really, I'm okay." She fiddled with the gizmo she'd disassembled without really trying to put it back together. _Dang it._ I was gonna have to do the dreaded, caring-brother thing.

"Nya, talk to me. I know something's bothering you, and you know you can unload on me about anything." _Please don't let it be some female problem_…

Keeping her eyes on the clutter before her, she made her glossy, ebony bob swing with a shake of her head. "I can't talk to you about this. You don't really want to hear it."

That made a small amount of fear creep into my heart. "Is, um, _Jay_ involved in this?" _If that bonehead has done anything… _

I sometimes hated to admit it, but Jay was pretty much my best friend, even though I gave him so much hell over being with Nya. Which was gonna make it really awkward when I had to kill him for hurting or dishonoring her.

Her hand went quickly to my chest. "Yes, but it's nothing _bad!"_ She must have read my mind and rushed to keep me from jumping to the wrong conclusion. "Never mind. You don't want to—"

"Nya…" Putting my arm around her shoulders, I gave her the face she said always reminded her of our father. The one that always got me what I wanted from her.

"Oh, alright, but it's _stupid."_ Dropping the metal plate she held onto the tabletop, she flopped onto the nearest chair and covered her face with a hand. "I guess I'm just…a little envious of _Arwyn."_

I wasn't expecting to hear _that_ and sat down heavily in the chair next to her, asking tentatively, "Umm…_why?"_

Her hands waved in a helpless gesture, her expression telling me she was struggling to explain herself. "Because…she's got _Cole_…and he's so _romantic_ with her…and—"

"And you want _Cole?!" _The conclusion had been hurdled with a flying leap.

"_No, _I don't want_ Cole!_ That's _not_ what I mean!" From the exasperated glare she gave me, I got the idea she thought I was an imbecile. "I want _Jay!_ It's just that he's _so_…"

To be helpful, I started a list_. "Not_ romantic, numbskulled, juvenile, immature…heck, in dog years, he's only, like, three—"

"Stop. It's that he's not into _planning_ anything. He doesn't seem to think past this _week,_ whereas Cole plans everything ad nauseam. I love Jay to smithereens, I always will, and I _know_ he loves me, he tells me every day, but—"

_Dammit, Cole. _"It's the ring, isn't it?" _Why'd you have to go do that so soon?_

Her sigh confirmed my guess. "Jay and I've been together for over two _years_. Cole met Arwyn less than two and a half _months_ ago. _She_ has a ring and a promise, while _**I**_…don't."

"Have you tried talking to Jay about this?" I was going out on a rotten limb. "Or…would you like me to?"

"No, Kai, I absolutely _don't_ want you do that!" I didn't think she had to look so damn _alarmed_ at that prospect, but…

_Whew! Got outta __**that**__ one!_

"And what am _**I**_ going to say? 'Set a wedding date, or I'll leave you'? _That_ would be ridiculous, and I'll _never _do that." She sighed again in resignation and stood from the chair. "I guess I'll just have to be patient and wait until he decides he's ready to commit to something like that. I don't want him to feel forced into anything."

I often saw Jay as being a lot like a puppy, stuck in the 'now' with an attention span shorter than that of a gnat. I could imagine his thought processes being something like an exploring, happy-go-lucky canine sniffing the ground—…_whatsthatwhatsthatwhatsthatwha—oops, gotta pee—whatsthatwhatsthatwhatsthat_…

However, I had to own up to the fact that he wasn't _always _that way.

Taking her hands in mine, I decided I ought to help Jay out for a change. "Nya, if it makes you feel any better, I know for _certain_ that Jay's already committed and planning for your future in _some_ way, even if he's too dumb-assed to have given you a symbol of it yet."

She was giving me her full attention. "Over a year ago he told me that if anything ever happened to him, he had an envelope under his mattress with your name on it." A glimmer of hope shone in her eyes, and she squeezed my hands as I let her in on the little secret.

"I don't know what's in it—a letter, money, stupid jokes he wrote—but it's something that's really important to him that he'd want you to have. I think that should mean something. It shows that he _is_ thinking ahead to _some_ degree."

She stared off into space with a concerned, but happier-seeming, air. "He's thinking about giving me something if he dies…Although, it'd mean more if he gave it to me while he lives." Nodding determinedly, she stated, "I think I _will_ talk to him about our future."

"Now _that _sounds like a plan." Not realizing how tense I'd been through that discussion, I felt like a weight had lifted from me suddenly when Nya let go of my hands and hugged me tightly around the neck. _You so owe me, Jay_…

Right then, the communications center buzzed the alert for an incoming call.

****Cole's POV**

"The call's an obvious SOS from the nearest point of civilization, even if they aren't responding to our inquiry." Zane and I were standing on opposite sides of the bridge's table, debating about the necessity of going out to the aid of whomever was calling for help. "Their lack of an answer to us tells me we really need to see about this."

"I understand your desire to assist those in need. I am simply stating that the radar shows nothing out of the ordinary, and Merlin has not picked up anything nearby on his surveillance flights." Zane coaxed the falcon from his forearm to its perch near the radar screen showing everything in a ten-mile radius around the _Bounty, _then plugged it up to the charger. "Perhaps it was a false alarm."

Bending to place my hands on the table, I turned my attention to Sensei Wu who stood gazing out of the large, circular window into the dreary, morning sky with his hands clasped behind his hips. "It's ultimately your call, Sensei. But I think we should head in that direction and investigate."

Almost in the middle of nowhere, we were about fifteen miles from the nearest village which was about five miles from the next-nearest hamlet. Ninjago City was almost two days' travel to the west of this site in the shadows of Dam Ned Craggy Range, and it took about a day just to get out of the sparsely-settled, rural area no matter which route you took.

We had stayed a few days in the Sea of Sand after returning from our rescue mission at the Castle of Poisoned Dreams, taking time to recuperate from all of our injuries. Over a week ago we had left the desert and begun meandering through areas like this in an effort to keep any pursuing Serpentine from zeroing in on us.

The Fang Blades were still in our safekeeping, awaiting their destruction in a few weeks as soon as the necessary, predicted solar flares occurred. Knowing the sun's magnetic eruptions would exponentially superheat the already-unbearable hellhole of Torchfire Mountain, Sensei and Zane had pinpointed the date on which we would purge the threat of the Great Devourer from Ninjago.

Until then, we were drifting aimlessly, or 'sightseeing', as Arwyn had put it. Not having spent much of her life outside of Miyagi or Ninjago City, she was just fine with experiencing other, scenic environs of Ninjago.

I was also more than happy to be able to share them with her and relate any stories I had about my travels through the areas. Consequently, we grabbed every chance we could to sit side by side on the deck and watch the picturesque countryside glide by, fantasizing about trips we'd take in the future when we weren't being chased by Serpentine.

Now she leaned against the counter in the bridge sandwiched between Kai and Jay, whose soaking-wet uniform dripped steadily on the wooden floor. Lloyd and A-Cappella playfully tussled at their feet, the only two in the place making any noise.

We were all waiting rather impatiently for her _Chichi_ to make the decision about whether or not his team of Spinjitzu masters should be deployed to the closest village Nya had located on her paper map of the area.

Finally, he spoke up with his back still to us. "Nya, set a course for Sanctuary."

"Alright!" Jay and Kai simultaneously jumped away from the counter, eager to be doing something other than training and cleaning. "When ya wanna leave?!"

I stood up straight at the table to direct my team. "Gear up, and we'll meet here in five to go over our tactic." Following Jay, Kai, and Zane, who were exiting the control room, I instructed our Samurai over my shoulder, "Nya, take us as far as this side of Shadowspawn Forest. We'll cross it in our vehicles to get the rest of the way to Sanctuary."

"Aye, aye, Captain!"

From behind me, Sensei announced his plans. "Rather than accompany you, I will remain here to guard the Blades with Nya and Lloyd." I stopped in my tracks.

_Uh, he forgot one_…Spinning on my heel, I luckily snagged the ninja in evergreen by the upper arm before she could sneak around me and through the door. "And _Arwyn."_ I said determinedly, weathering the irritated scowl she flung at me.

Without a hint of indecision in my voice, I looked her dead in the eye so she couldn't misinterpret my meaning. "She's staying with _you_. We don't know what we might be facing." _ I'm not taking any chances with her..._

I expected Sensei Wu to have my back, so I was unexpectedly floored when he responded, "Actually, I believe she will be going with _you_ today." Even Arwyn looked at him in astonishment.

_What is he __**thinking?**_ "Sensei—"

He held up a hand, not letting me counter his proclamation. "She will join the rest of the team since this may be more of a mission of good will than anything else." I know he saw the twitch in my eyelid that I couldn't control.

Regarding Arwyn with a stern look, he continued, "You will, of course, be subject to Cole's command and remain out of any combat that may arise as well as you are able." She nodded in eager agreement.

To me, he added, "She must get the experience she needs, for we know not when the final battle may occur."

My index finger curtly stabbed toward the frolicking A-Cappella. "We don't know when something like _that _may occur again, _either!"_

Lloyd grabbed the short-haired puppy from the floor, holding him to his chest defensively. "Hey! It wasn't _his _fault!"

"I _know_ that!" My retort was tenser and more agitated than I had meant it to be, and I pushed the hair from my forehead while I got myself together. "He's just a _constant_ reminder that no matter _how hard I try_, I _can't_ protect Arwyn from _everything_. Or _you_, for that matter."

_Nothing else can make me feel so powerless, and it's gonna be **forced** on me?!_

"We know from past events that we cannot sequester the Green Ninja forever," Sensei intoned evenly, putting his back to me to once again take in the drizzly view. "It may even be a grave disservice to her to be attempting to do that at every turn."

"She has to start _somewhere,_ Cole," Nya chimed in from the helm, adding somewhat wistfully, "I wouldn't mind going myself."

_Thanks, Nya. You're just as **not** helpful as your brother today.._.

Gently pulling out of my grip, Arwyn moved to stand facing me, seeming a little fretful, instead of victorious. "You said yourself not long ago that we can't sit and worry about every horrible thing that may happen." _She's using my own words against me_…

Placing her hands in the middle of my chest, her fingertips slipped under the edge of my jacket's lapels. "We can only seize the day and hope that everything works out and good will prevail. Right?"

I was outnumbered. Thankfully, the guys weren't in there, too, to make it a landslide. My thumb found its way to the pink, arrow-shaped scar under her cheekbone. I closed my eyes to it. "I don't want you with us, but it looks like I have no choice. Much as I'd like to, I can't keep you in a bubble. Gear up."

**A/N: Yeah, I just had to take another jab at the ridiculous ColeXNya thing. XP Please review!**


	2. Resentment Festers

**A/N: IDONOTOWNNINJAGO**

**OMG, I am so excited! I actually already have readers, and_ terrific reviewers_, for this! Thank you all for helping me get off to a wonderful start! I hope I can keep you interested! I'm always a little slow to start, so not as much action yet as I'd like.**

**Sorry the chappies are not so long. Like I said earlier, I wrote the outline and some scenes for this over a year ago, but fleshing it out and writing what I call 'bridge scenes' is kicking my butt for some reason. So chapters may be shorter, but, hopefully, may come more frequently.**

**Okay, let's see how this goes...hope you enjoy the read, let me know how you feel about the 1st versus 3rd POV, and _please review!_**

_DESTINY'S BOUNTY, _FIVE HUNDRED FEET ABOVE SHADOWSPAWN FOREST'S EDGE

****Arwyn's POV**

_I __**hate**__ getting wet when I don't wanna be. How can they __**stand**__ this without complaining?_

The rain plip-plopped on my helmet in a taunting singsong as I hunched my shoulders with my arms folded over my chest and stared down at my tabi boots surrounded by a puddle on the clean deck. I had my head lowered to keep the cold water from running into my face, and my mind was skipping to more comfortable places and things.

Instead of getting drenched, Cole and I should have been snuggling in a beanbag and sharing toffee-coated popcorn, watching Kai and Lloyd battle it out over something involving virtual weapons instead of the ones we were packing.

As an alternative to _that_ pleasant activity, I was standing in such _wonderful_ weather with my team of guardians, participating in a quick planning session before we all took off for Sanctuary.

_Sanctuary._ It sounded like such a desirable place to live. A safe haven, a protected shelter, a nice village in which to raise kids. Such a shame that those who resided there were suffering in some way and needed our help. That thought made the rain seem like tears shed from the heavens in an attempt to wash away the wrongs in Ninjago.

Tapping a finger on the device on my wrist, Cole asked for my attention as he was going on with his usual pre-deployment instructions, and I tried to concentrate on what he was saying. "Everybody's got their homing devices and comlinks, right? We're all on the same channel, correct? Keep your radars on, and keep an eye out for anything unusual along the way. Zane, did you send out Merlin for a flyover of the village?"

"That is an affirmative." The ice ninja's precise enunciations carried over the persistent pattering on our equipment and the ship's wood. "I should be getting video feedback in five to six minutes. We will soon be able to visualize any Serpentine that may be in the area."

"Good. Let me know as soon as you do," Cole reminded him, setting the butt of his scythe on the deck to form a triangle with the toes of his boots. "If all seems peaceful, we'll dispel our vehicles in the woods and infiltrate quietly from four different directions to investigate and take care of whatever might arise."

"However, if there's _any_ kind of fighting going on, regardless of who the attackers are, there'll be no need for us to be stealthy. We'll engage as soon as we arrive unless something else crops up." The group around me shuffled on the deck expectantly, murmuring agreement, ready to be off.

Determined to hold the reins, our leader went on with getting us all on the same page. "As it stands, Nya's only getting what appears to be normal village activity and nothing subterranean. If I detect anything underground, I'll put out a warning. We don't want to be surprised by _anyone_ or _anything_ this time around." Even with my head down, I knew he looked pointedly at me when he said, "We _have _to be careful."

Standing a short distance away from the group, Kai restlessly shifted his weight from one leg to the other and swung his sword in a low arc around himself. "Yeah, but I still hope we're not going out there for nothing. The ol' Sword of Fire wouldn't mind sharpening itself on a few Serpentine bones."

"It'll be good training for Arwyn, even if we _are_ going out for nothing," Cole grated out, sounding like he was forced to say the words and trying to convince himself. More quietly, he added, "And let's hope we _are." _His hand rested on the back of my shoulder, at my armor's edge.

_I know __**I'm**__ hoping_…I could feel my heart rate picking up as we got closer to leaving. Putting this mission stuff off a bit longer suddenly wasn't such a bad idea.

A blur of blue zipped up close to my other shoulder, and the flash of an electric bolt snapped at my arm, not effecting me, but making Cole jerk his hand away with a painful, startled yelp. The involuntary giggle I let loose was bitten back.

"Oops, sorry, Cole!" Jay gave a short laugh and another teasing zap to my elbow. "C'mon, Arwyn, look alive! You're about to go on your first official mission! Don't be Gloomy Gus!"

"I'm not!" I insisted, finally showing my face to everyone and trying to act enthusiastic. I couldn't show any weakness. _I can't seem like a wuss. I'm a ninja. Right?_ So I lied. "I just don't like the rain in my eyes. I'm ready to get going any time you are."

"Well, then, we should begin, my friend," Zane announced energetically as he gave Cole an encouraging slap on the back.

"Right. It's time to go." Cole sounded anything _but_ ready. _I'm not in such a big hurry, myself._

After the usual 'Ninja go!' team cheer, Jay jumped the railing and jetted off with Zane close behind him.

Kai eased up next to me before I got to the gunwale, asking secretively under his breath, "You wanna ride with me and avoid a tongue-lashing on the way?" He paused, leering suggestively like he was flipping through a dirty magazine. "Of course, maybe you'd _like_ that!"

I started to decline his offer and smack him with a scathing come-back for the innuendo, but I had no time. Cole, making a beeline for the ship's side, slipped an arm around my waist from behind as he walked purposefully past, scooping me up from the deck without a word to Kai or me.

Leaping to stand balancing on the slippery railing, he spun me in his arms to meet his entrancing gaze, holding me around the waist firmly against his rigid, muscular body under the early-summer shower. Instinctively, a frisson of arousal went through me as he clasped me to him. For a moment, it was as if the rain, even time itself, had frozen around us, and I caught my breath, hoping he was about to kiss me.

Our embrace was not one of my adoring fiancé's usual, passionate cuddles, however. I could see something else in the way his dark, heavy brows nearly met over brooding, greenish-grey eyes, the way his mouth was set in a firm, straight line. It was a confirmation of what I already knew. _He's worried sick…_

My arms automatically went around his neck, since we'd done this dozens of times in the past, and I gave myself up completely to his care. With my cheek against his collarbone, I leaned with Cole over the edge, and we fell as one, twisting in a slow spiral, headfirst toward the ground, and whatever was to come.

SORROW'S END INN, SANCTUARY

****3****rd**** POV**

The serving staff of Sorrow's End frantically bustled about the filled-to-capacity common room of the old, timber-frame-and-stone inn. The handful of hard-working men and women were fearfully doing their best to keep up with the insistent demands of the non-paying reptilian troop that filled the place for the midday meal.

Near the double wooden kitchen door stood the scowling soncho of the village, ever-watchful for a dissatisfied snake or negligent employee. He had recently finished conferring with the inn's short, portly, and very-distraught proprietor, stressing that they did not need to have the hostile Serpentine crew becoming enraged over an empty keg or a spilled platter of meat.

When the dominating Constrictai general led his contingent of scaly minions out of Sanctuary, the village headman wanted them to be pleased with their time spent occupying the passive settlement, so that the next invasion, if there was one, would be less violent.

From his vantage point, the pasty-faced man had a clear view of the reptilian chief and Bytar, his second-in-command, a two-legged, black-and-grey brute with an orange skull crest. Having spent most of the morning at their humiliating beck and call, he had just been given a respite after broadcasting a distress call at the astonishing behest of Skalidor.

Although the head of the village had considered it a waste of his time, a response had come back almost immediately after the transmission. That was something he never would have expected.

What further surprised him was the fact that Skalidor's bipedal assistant had not allowed him to answer the response. Why encourage him to call for help if he could not communicate with potential rescuers? Why let him call at all?

His eye on the Serpentine leader and his deputy, the man deliberated about their possible motives, knowing only that, at all costs, he was going to do what he could to protect his investments in the community.

Wishing he could be a fly on the wall, the soncho slowly made his way toward the far side of the common room where Bytar was settling himself on a bench at Skalidor's table.

"The distress call has been successfully sent by that groveling snit, and the ship of fools jumped on it right away, just as you thought they would." The grubby lackey twisted a large chunk of roasted flesh from the carcass on the platter resting at the center of the table. "Given their present location, from the scout's information, the sitting ducks should arrive well before the top of the hour."

Skalidor's mouth smacked after he emptied his earthenware stein and slammed it to the food-scrap-littered tabletop. The back of a taloned hand and a forked tongue swiped at the suds left on the edges of his jaws. "Ahh, excellent! I like instant gratification."

Otherwise ignoring her, he leaned back from the table to allow the attentive serving girl to refill his mug with ale. "So, the lure was cast and has already been swallowed whole by the unsuspecting quarry. Now we need do little more than wait patiently for the self-righteous heroes to reel themselves in and be delivered into _our_ hands."

Bytar grunted his consensus, but was too absorbed with biting the last few, juicy morsels from the bone he held with both hands to say anything. His superior eyed him with some disgust, then raised his replenished cup to swill more of its fermented contents.

"Tsk, tsk." The tip of his tongue clicked against the hard palate of his oral cavity in mock concern. "It is truly a pity that Wu and his plebes are so easily taken in when it comes to their single-minded mission to save all of the undeserving surface-dwellers in this great land of _ours." _

"If only they were not so selfless and generous with their gifts and skills. If they took a more mercenary approach, they might turn a nice profit and avoid falling into these obvious snares." Reaching ahead of Bytar, Skalidor filched the last meat pie from the serving tray. "Of course, I still believe they would be valuable allies if they could only be convinced to be more cooperative and play the game _our_ way."

The general's underling frowned at the loss of the filled pastry, but shrugged ambivalently regarding the last comments. "Guess they're just not smart enough for that. But, anyway, I think everyone's almost done eating, and they'll be ready to take on the ninja as soon as they arrive. I've got four guards set around the edges of town watching for any signs of them. This'll be easy as pie," he stated with assurance and spooned up a bite of the fruity dessert next to him.

Skalidor wiped his greasy hand on his chest plate, and drilled his right-hand man with an authoritative look that accompanied his command. "When they come, make no mistake, I want to see _all_ of the ninja destroyed, but I want your _primary_ target to be the deceiver in _black._" He rested his back on the wall behind him. "Fool that he was, I am forced to admit, far too late, that Acidicus was _right_ about the swine."

"'Valerio Cole' he called himself." The name was uttered with naked resentment by one who believed a great injustice had been perpetrated against him. "Even if you only get that _lying cheat_, at least he will pay for denying me the chance to possess him!"

Bytar cut his eyes toward his chief. He had heard little else but this constant ranting since he and Skalidor had met up at an alternate rendezvous point after the debacle at the Castle of Poisoned Dreams. He could understand the Constrictai commander's anger over losing the Scythe of Quakes and so many soldiers, but he sometimes wondered if the officer's unhealthy preoccupation with the ninja captain was based on something else.

After motioning with a soiled hand for the warriors in the inn to begin vacating it, Bytar watched as the human crew began their cleanup and remarked, "I still find it hard to believe that he made it out of that tower alive. _You_ barely escaped with your skin. Had I been there—"

"Instead of having been passed out intoxicated in the latrine?" Skalidor snorted with scorn while Bytar frowned at his loss of dignity. "Yes, you surely would have expired in the tower along with that conniving Acidicus."

"_**I**_ do not find it a stretch of the imagination that the scum in black survived the collapse of the tower." Sitting forward again, the black-and-orange boss agitatedly toppled the stein in front of him, wetting the table with what was left of the brown liquid in it. "He knew very _well _what he was doing. He is quite powerful and extremely dedicated to that group of his."

Skalidor's hideous snout held a thoughtful expression, and he repeated, "Extremely dedicated…He took an exceptional risk for them all. Even the girl, whom he insisted, so convincingly, meant nothing to him…"

Bytar drank the last of his ale and set the mug on the table. "He lied to you."

"Yes, and he will die for betraying me!" The general had been mulling over a thought he had had at the castle. "Unless I can find a way to make him suffer even more…"

He had considered then that if the girl in green was the Master of Earth's mate, anything done to harm _her_ would be _more_ effective at making the ninja suffer than exacting vengeance on the young man personally. Perhaps—

The usually-cowering village leader stepped boldly from the shadows near the conversing serpents, causing the long-tailed snake to recoil the slightest bit and Bytar to reach for his dagger.

The man's hands went up in front of him, his palms facing out. "Forgive me for being so forward! I did not mean to intrude, but I could not help but overhear that you have condemned a traitor to death." He paused as the reptiles regarded him in wary silence.

"Your numbers are sparse," the soncho said straightforwardly. When he sensed from their defensive body language that he may have sounded insolent, his flattering tongue added quickly, "Although I'm sure they are _more_ than capable of vanquishing _twice_ that amount in battle."

Having roused the pair's curiosity as to why he may have approached them, the man edged closer to the corner of the table, stacking the dirty plates and righting the drinking vessels as he inquired, "Would you like to achieve his demise without the loss of a single warrior?"

Bytar scoffed and stood quickly, shoving the bench away from the table. "We don't need any help—"

A clawed hand was held up for silence by the scaled one in charge who inclined his massive head for the man to continue. Given permission, the mayor began speaking again. "I have a secret weapon that may be just what you need—if you would consider cutting a deal with us."

"We don't make deals with inferior wretches!" Bytar sneered, stepping intimidatingly close to the councilman.

Skalidor's fist came down on the table in warning, rattling the utensils. Gleaming, yellow slits examined the fellow cynically. "You would have something valuable I have not looted during my previous visits?"

Dull, red-rimmed, blue eyes stared back at him. "You might say that."

**A/N: Dun, dun, dduuunnn... Please leave a tip! ;) Later!**


	3. For Whom the Bell Tolls

**A/N: It's been a tough last couple of weeks, but getting back to my story has been good for me. **

**Thanks so very much for the incredible responses my reviewers, followers, and 'favoriters' have given me for the first couple of chappies! You are all so wonderfully generous and thoughtful!**

**I know I'm slow, but here we go… ! Enjoy the read, and please review!  
**

**Chapter 3**

TREAD ASSAULT, SHADOWSPAWN FOREST

****Arwyn's POV**

We had been riding in silence for nearly three minutes since hitting the ground in the Treader after our leap from the _Bounty_. Three minutes wasn't really a long time for us to sit without speaking to each other, but I could tell Cole was seriously worked up over the idea of having me along on this campaign. The anvil-like weight of his earth element in my chest sorta gave it away.

My emerald-leather-covered knuckles rapped lightly several times on the crown of the black-hooded helmet in front of me, the only part I could see above the headrest of the front seat. The tapping earned me a sullen growl from its wearer, the driver of the Tread Assault_. "What."_

"I'm lonely back here." I tried out the best flirtatious, pouty tone I could muster. "You could talk to me on the way, you know."

"What's the point? I don't want us to end up arguing about this, and then I lose focus and dispel this thing or slam us into one of these humongous trees." He must have been immune to flirty pouts when he was girded for battle.

"What's to argue about?" I asked innocently as Cole squeezed the wide, black-and-gold Spinjitzu vehicle between two of the aforementioned, humongous trees, scraping the bark off of both of them. "We're just all going on a teeny mission." Yeah. I could keep telling myself that.

"You shouldn't be _with_ us. But I was _overruled,_ and you're doing what you've been _wanting_ to do." His response was full of bitterness. "I can _feel_ the excitement in your elements."

"Excuse _me?!_ Who said this is what I've been _wanting?"_ I gawked at the back of his helmet like he'd gone totally insane. "And, for your information, that's not _excitement,_ buddy, it's more like fe—" My lips clamped together before I blurted out that I felt like I was about to step out of a plane at ten thousand feet with no parachute. Not even one of Jay's gliders.

_And_ we were arguing.

"'_Fear'?"_ Cole repeated the word as if it was completely foreign to him. I was guessing he'd thought I saw my inclusion on this trip as being akin to a triumph for the women of the _Bounty, _or a shopping excursion off a cruise ship.

"Never _mind! _ And watch where you're going!" The swerving, back-and-forth movement of Cole's erratic driving was making me green around the gills as we zigzagged in and out amongst the thick, towering conifers, bumping over roots, fallen logs, and brush. I tried to distract myself and not dwell on that or our little exchange.

Stretching to see around his seat, I got a glimpse of the instrument panel in front of him. We were traveling at about forty-five miles per hour through the densely-wooded, aptly-named Shadowspawn Forest.

In the rear-view dash monitor, I could see Kai riding behind us on his flameless Blade Cycle, taking full advantage of the fact that Cole's all-terrain vehicle mowed down any and all of the sparse underbrush in its path.

Jay was somewhere overhead, already sending Cole reports of not much happening on his radar, giving me hope that this truly would turn out to be just a dry run. Well, as dry as it would get on a day like this.

Meanwhile, several yards to our right, Zane was creating his own trail through the scrubby bushes with his slim, streamlined Snowmobile, occasionally passing over the bigger obstacles on bridges of ice.

Sitting back in my seat again, I regarded the scene through the Treader's tinted, rain-streaked canopy. The lofty, ancient treetops seemed woven together, practically blocking out all traces of the steel-colored sky, leaving everything they covered in perpetual semidarkness. I wondered briefly if the precipitation pelting us was actually rain or just residual droplets falling from the needle-tipped branches overhead.

A few more moments of pregnant silence passed while I tried to pretend I was mad at the moping ninja in front of me, but I couldn't do it for long. Rarely was I able to stay angry with him for more than a few minutes. I had to break the quiet. "This reminds me of the first time I rode in here. We didn't say much to each other on the way to the _Bounty_ that afternoon, either."

My yummy, Italian hottie blew a breath between his teeth. "You'd pissed me off 'cause you wouldn't take my hand and let me help you into it. I thought you might be stuck on yourself or kinda bitchy…" _You thought __**what**__?!_ "But I couldn't make myself dislike you. I only wanted you more."

I retracted the claws with a smile. "I just didn't _know_ you. I thought I needed to keep my guard up and assert my independence—"

"Hmmph. You've done plenty of _that_ since then…"

I thumped the top of his helmet with a flick of my middle finger. "And when I _did _know you, I didn't think I should love you so quickly…or so much. I'm glad we were both _wrong_ for a change."

"Umm." We were quiet for a second before he said, "I have to come to terms with the fact that you didn't just come into my life to bring so much more meaning to it and make me so unbelievably happy. You have a bigger role to play that I'm supposed to be preparing you to take on." He sounded almost…defeated.

"I told you before, nothing's bigger or more important to me than being with _you."_ I wished so much that I could be in his arms at that moment. "The other thing is just a temp job." _Pleasepleasepleasepleaseplease…_

"Let's hope—"

Nya's voice from our comlinks interrupted our tête-à-tête. "Everyone, we've got increased activity noted in the square since you left. May be a public gathering, could be a skirmish."

"Same up here!" the lightning ninja confirmed. "Radar's showing about two dozen more bodies than we were noting earlier. Moving around like ants…"

_Dammit. Why couldn't it stay quiet?_

"Cole, I have just received a clear transmission from Merlin." I held my breath as Zane gave his report. "We have a positive visual of definite Serpentine conflict in the village plaza. As Jay said, twenty-one armed warriors are clashing with fifteen poorly-equipped civilians."

"Woo hoo!" Kai sounded almost like he was in the cockpit with us. "We're in business!"

_Dammit, dammit, dammit_…

Cole sighed, and I felt more of a press from the earth element before he began barking orders over his comlink. "Alright, we're going in, guys! Jay, we're about one and half miles out, wait for us. Prepare to engage _immediately_ upon arrival. Do your best to protect the villagers and their property. Show no mercy to the Serpentine. Attempt to capture only leaders for interrogation later. And _stay safe_. Over!"

Things were suddenly getting _seriously_ real, and I was suddenly thinking the latter part of the fight-or-flight response would be an appropriate action when I heard Cole say tersely, "Arwyn, I want you to _stay_ with the Treader."

Although that really sounded like an exceptional idea to me, I shook my head at the back of his seat. "I'm coming with you."

Steering hard to the right, he raised his voice with his curt response. "I don't _want _you in this—"

My left shoulder banged the side of the cockpit before I could brace myself. "You _won't_ have your scythe if I stay!" I snapped back logically. Honestly, I wanted to stay like he said, but I couldn't take the cowardly way out. "I'm coming _with_ you!"

"…Alright…_fine!"_ From his sharp tone, I knew _he_ knew I was right. "But stay with me every _second,_ don't leave me for _anything!_ I don't care if the Serpentine are swallowing kids _whole—__**don't leave me!**__ Capisce?"_

I pulled my mask up to cover my lower face and adjusted my vest armor while my annoyance and fear grappled with each other. "Ye-_ess!_ I'll be up your _butt_ the entire _time_. How's _that?"_

Ignoring my sarcastic comment, he started spouting out plans into his comlink instead. "We're coming up fast on the village, guys!" I could see the small, brown-and-ecru buildings through the break in the trees not far in front of us. "From my radar, the crowd seems to be concentrated on this side of the _piazza."_

"I'm gonna build a ramp in the dirt street like I did with the sand dunes to get on the _Bounty._ That's gonna put me landing near the center of the _piazza _on the other side of the fight. Kai and Zane, stay on this side."

The connection with the rest of the team was broken off before he needlessly repeated his previous directive to me. "Don't _leave_ me!"

"Never," I promised sincerely. _I'll be stuck to you like a tattoo…_

Clearing the trees, we were abruptly out in the open, splashing onto the narrow, pothole-filled lane that led into the village barely a tenth of a mile ahead. Through the steady rain, we were rapidly approaching the mix of single- and two-story, thatched- and wood-shingle-roofed structures.

"Take my hand!" Cole instructed me, holding it out, palm-up, over his left shoulder.

Immediately doing as he bid me, I grasped his large, black-clad hand tightly with my smaller one, drawing strength from the way his fingers securely gripped mine. I could see the struggling crowd in the square, and watched as the muddy street was miraculously built up into a tall, steep, earthen ramp before the Tread Assault.

"I love you, my heart!" I said loudly over the roar of the Treader's engine as the Master of Earth revved it, accelerating to gain momentum for the right trajectory to get us over the group.

"I love you more!"

BELL TOWER, VILLAGE OF SANCTUARY

****3****rd**** POV**

The freestanding bell tower was positioned less than sixty yards from the edge of the marketplace, looming over all that surrounded it with the exception of the trees of the forest and the neighboring mountain range. From this highest point in the community, Skalidor and Bytar watched the mishmash of Serpentine and men who scuffled in the open area below.

Holding his gilded scepter of the Constrictai tribe with one filthy hand, the general rested his other hand on the wet, wooden ledge of the expansive belfry opening and leaned out into the light rainfall. With bated breath, he scanned the tree line for any sign of the ninja team he knew was en route.

His maleficent smile was more like a grimace across his black, scaly snout. Ochre-hued eyes with their thin, vertical pupils narrowed, the tip of his stout tail twitched like a stalking cat's. This would be the day he exacted his retaliation on the despised, yet coveted, ninja of earth.

Observing the staged fight in the square, Skalidor was pleased with the appearance of things. Knowing the ninja would have methods of surveilling the area before they arrived, the Constrictai leader had ordered that some believable sign of Serpentine occupation and dominance be set up immediately following his talk with the _soncho_ in the inn.

As a result, Bytar's soldiers and several men from the village population had been assembled in the cobbled plaza and had begun sparring with one another in the unrelenting rain. The town's mayor had requested that the fighting be only simulated, to which Skalidor had indifferently agreed. He had not, however, promised as much.

No match for the better-armed, more-experienced, and highly-excitable snakes, the village men with their crude weapons may not have been sustaining life-threatening injuries, but blood was definitely being drawn throughout the crowd.

_No matter_, thought Skalidor. The flow of red vital fluids staining the flagstones and puddling here and there would only add to the realism when the scene was assessed by Wu's students.

"For a hastily-put-together, yet ingenious, plan of yours, all seems to be progressing well." At his side, Bytar's ingratiating comment intruded into the leader's thoughts. "The fighting looks genuine, and the rest of it should go off without a hitch. Everyone has been instructed to back off when the bell tolls and to make for the two escape tunnels as soon as the job is done."

"They've been told that once we've cleared this place, we'll all meet at the rendezvous point. All we need now is for the pigeons to arrive." The lieutenant ended with a whistling chortle.

"Quiet!" Skalidor demanded reproachfully, annoyed at the interruption in his concentration. He well knew what the plan was. Under his breath, he summarized the focal point of the plot, at the same time keeping his eye on the forest's border. "Whether or not anything else is accomplished, just be certain that the one in black goes down. _That_ must be your _main _objective!"

Bytar bowed his crested head slightly at the admonishment, grumbling, "Of course, general." Catching the not-so-distant sound of several engines, he brought his chin up again and focused on the village's perimeter. "They're here!"

Skalidor stiffened, his height increasing in anticipation, knowing his patience would soon pay off. "The blissfully ignorant prey is sauntering right into our pitfall."

A streak of blue, black, and gold heralded the arrival of the ninja of lightning as his jet swooped low over the community's water well at the center of the plaza and disappeared. Its aviator was deposited on the diminutive, peaked roof which protected the villagers' essential resource.

From atop the low, wood-shingled cover, the shinobi in blue-and-silver crouched, the golden Nunchuks of Lightning glinting in his hand, as he waited for his teammates to join him.

Mere seconds later, the remaining three Masters made their debuts as their Spinjitzu vehicles came speeding toward the village on the road that led into it from the west.

The general's forked tongue darted from between his jaws, disclosing his eagerness when he saw the mound that precipitously rose from the center of the rutted trail of clay. On either side of the rise, the fire and ice ninja entered the square, dispelling their vehicles as soon as they hit the paving stones, touching down with weapons in hand, ready for combat.

Simultaneously, the black-and-gold vehicle of the earth ninja hit the steep incline and arced over the crowd, vanishing in a brief burst of light as it reached the unoccupied center of the public court. Hand-in-hand, its black and green occupants landed on their feet on the cobbles, and were quickly joined by the light-footed ninja from the top of the well.

A sharp intake of breath was drawn by Skalidor. "The elemental girl remains with him! The charlatan did _indeed_ lie about her!" He stared at the ninja leader as the strapping, young man wasted no time in heading for the nearest Serpentine and proceeded to strike the warrior down with a practiced, one-handed swing of his scythe, never letting go of the smaller ninja in evergreen.

The two-legged Constrictai deputy spoke up with alarm as he viewed the mêlée. "He and his group are going to kill as many of my soldiers as they can!"

Skalidor paid no mind to the threat of casualties. "Still, how fortuitous…This definitely changes the rules of play." Coiling away from the window, Skalidor pointed his staff at a young villager waiting in the shadows alongside the _soncho. _"There has been a change in plans, boy! Spare the black ninja—your target is now the one in green." He was answered with a timid bow.

Bytar gestured in surprise with a wave of his hand in the direction of the conflict. "But, general, the earth ninja—"

Skalidor halted him with a daunting glare. "Do not question me! If she is anything to him, it will be profoundly more meaningful for the conniving double-crosser to watch his _mate_ suffer and die than for him to do so himself."

Glancing out at the now-authentic battle being waged between the reptiles and their ninja combatants, Skalidor noted that several colorful bodies lay on the flagstones, none of them human. In exasperation, he thumped the butt of his staff on the wooden floor of the bell tower. "We must _end_ this before he and his team slay _all_ of my troops!"

Sliding toward the stairwell with Bytar marching behind him, he barked to the _soncho_ hovering near the bell rope, "Before you ring the bell, give me thirty seconds to get down there and in position. I want to be near enough to see the terror and agony in his damned face!"

At the doorway to the spiraling staircase, he tarried, menacingly aiming a crooked finger at the other townsman in the belfry. "And _you_—once the bell is rung, the first chance you get, _do your job!"_

IN THE VILLAGE SQUARE

****Arwyn's POV **

Cole and_ Chichi_ had ordered that I was to stay out of the combat, but they _hadn't_ said I couldn't assist my team by long-distance. At about fifteen feet away, another detestable snake fell to the ground after being hit with a torrent of my combined fire and lightning.

_Not bad if I say so myself… _I allowed myself a little smugness. It covered up the nervousness for a time.

Behind me, I could hear the sounds of fighting—metal clanking against metal, pain-filled cries of wounded Serpentine, sickening thumps and smacks. This was mixed with Kai's verbal taunting as he faced off with an adversary, Jay cheering himself on after an impressive move, and Cole's muted grunting from the minimal exertion it took him to beat one of the soldiers to a bloody pulp. Zane was the only one who worked quietly.

Letting them do what they had to do, I kept my back to them, not really caring to witness the whole process at the moment and making myself useful by watching out for anyone sneaking up behind us. While I was taking care of that business, I had a sense that something wasn't quite the same as when we had arrived about five minutes ago.

_What's different here…? _Spotting movement in my peripheral vision, I turned and saw an injured citizen of Sanctuary hobbling down the sidewalk with the aid of a fellow resident. Coming to an entryway, they hurried inside and slammed the door behind them. A quick glance around answered my question. _All of the villagers are gone._

I was about to say something about that to Cole when the resounding tolling of a large bell broke through the clamor of battle. Startled, I jerked my face up toward the harsh pealing, having failed to notice earlier that there was a spire in the village.

The rain had me blinking my eyes hard when they were struck by the falling droplets so that I was unable to see what might be at the top of the tower. Not far from me I heard Jay quip, "They'd better reset their watches! The cuckoo clock's about ten minutes too early!"

A fleeting thought occurred to me as I wiped my eyes with my fingertips and turned to look at Cole. "Maybe it's an alert, a warning?"

He was moving in a circle with the snath of his scythe in both fists, taking in a panoramic view of the area. "Why are the snakes backing off…?"

I didn't have time to wonder what he meant. One moment I was standing a short distance behind him, the next I was being hit in the thigh with a force similar to being butted by one of my father's much-hated Hampshire rams. The power of it kicked my leg from beneath me, sending me sprawling into one of the muddy puddles in the marketplace, gasping in shock from the blow and the fall.

That's when I was also hit by the unbelievably excruciating pain that ripped through my upper leg.

As the cold, uncaring rain spattered in my face, my next breath was an agonized scream I had no possible chance of holding back.

****Cole's POV**

The full strength of her elements struck me directly in the chest. Nearly doubling me over, it took my breath away and, strangely, brought back the memory of the time I was sparring with Kai when he got in a lucky side-kick that caught me right below the sternum.

Then came a tortured scream.

"Arwyn?!" First confusion, then fear shot through me as I whirled to find her still screaming and writhing on her left side on the cobblestones. She grasped at her right thigh, her fist was wrapped around a narrow, wooden shaft tipped with yellow fletching.

_WHAT THE FU—?! _

I'm not sure how I got to her. The next thing I knew, I was down on my hands and knees at her side, calling her name in a thin, quivery voice, staring in horror and disbelief at the arrow protruding from her leg, at her precious blood coating her hand, staining her wet pants, already collecting in a light-red, watery pool under her.

_OhGodOhGodOhGodOhGod…_

Taking her by the shoulders, I pulled her rain-drenched upper body onto my lap, tugged down her mask, and hugged her to me. Her initial scream had ended, but her breath was coming in short, quick gasps as she repeatedly cried out my name, grabbing at my sleeves. Her eyes, trained on mine, were filled with pain and panic.

"Oh, baby, I'mhereI'mhereI'mhere! It's gonna be okay! It's all gonna be okay!" I couldn't think, but I knew I needed help. _**"Zane!**__ I need you! Get over here!"_

It wasn't necessary for me to call for him. He was already there, running up from behind me, responding immediately to the sound of Arwyn's scream and her crying, sounds that had been nearly drowned out by the fateful tolling of the bell from the _campanile_.

The lingering reverberations of the same, clanging bell, although fading, were still bouncing around the village. But as we knelt by Arwyn, beginning first aid and trying to calm her, they were replaced by a deep, hateful cackling.

At the edge of the paved square, several yards away, stood Skalidor and Bytar, watching us with mirthful faces.

"Ah, the sounds of pain and anguish are so satisfying to me when coming from someone you care so much about!" Skalidor laughed loudly again before his expression turned uglier than normal. "You played me for a _fool,_ making me believe she meant _nothing_ to you, but now the score is settled!"

"Just as you denied me my chance to have _you,_ so you will now be denied the chance to have _her!"_ With a dramatic wave of his staff, he pivoted away, slithering hurriedly toward a freshly-excavated hole down which I could see other Serpentine disappearing, and shouted over his shoulder, "Enjoy your time alone until we meet again, _Valerio Cole!"_

Every cell in my body nearly exploded with rage when I understood what he'd just done, and why. _Because he hated me._

Clutching Arwyn tightly to my chest while she desperately fought to control her hiccupping sobs against my leather vest armor, I thundered with a snarl, _"GET HIM!"_ Echoing throughout the _piazza, _my bellow was guttural, primal, filled with wrath.

Instantly, Jay sped by me, hardly pausing long enough to reach into Zane's leather flank pouch to snatch the kyoketsu-shoge the ice ninja kept there. Twirling the ring-end of the eighteen-foot cord like a lasso over his head, he sprinted toward Skalidor with the double-bladed knife in his other hand.

The Constrictai general was only a few feet from his tunnel to freedom when Jay released the cord, casting it to wrap around the shaft of the snake's tribal scepter, stopping the Serpentine leader in his tracks. Taking hold of his staff with both hands, the snake tugged mightily against the ninja, who wrapped the cord around his wrist and dug his heels into the ground, pulling back with everything he had.

Running in from the other side of the open area, Kai yelled, "To the ground, Jay!" His brother-in-arms dropped to one knee and lowered his head and shoulders, but never let loose of the thin cable.

Kai bounded forward when he had nearly reached Jay, leaping up to set his foot to the Master of Lightning's back scabbard like it was a springboard, and launched himself toward Skalidor. Held high overhead, his razor-sharp kunai gleamed in his fist.

As awesome as that stunt was, it didn't quite pan out. He was nearly hit by Bytar's scimitar blade when it was wielded by the assistant to sever the kyoketsu-shoge cable that Skalidor held taut while he struggled to free his staff. With the cord abruptly cut, Skalidor lurched away toward his escape route just as Kai was in mid-leap.

Slashing downward, the fire ninja's kunai missed its original mark as he fell short of landing on the general, hitting the ground on his belly instead.

His efforts weren't a total failure, however. The snake howled in pain from the jagged, bloody gash Kai's blade had torn through the scaly skin down his back from his shoulder to past his torso before impaling itself in the reptile's tail.

Lying face down in the mud, Kai tried to maintain his grip on the knife as Skalidor's thick tail whipped back and forth in an effort to reach his hole in the ground. My brother was completely unaware that he was now a target as Bytar raised his scimitar for a chopping blow at his back.

"Roll, Kai!" Jay hollered as he leapt up from his kneeling position and made for Bytar with his hands sparking. Kai obeyed the command, released the kunai's handle, and swiftly logrolled several feet to the side an instant before Bytar's sword was buried in the earth in the spot he'd occupied.

Without Kai's weight to slow him, Skalidor was able to quicken his pace and dove for the waiting tunnel.

On his back, Kai faced Bytar, who was raising his scimitar for one more try at the Master of Fire. True to his title, Kai extended both hands and blasted the snake with two streams of fire, enveloping his head and shoulders in flames at the same moment that Jay was discharging a bolt of lightning at the brute.

The Serpentine lieutenant couldn't even squeal like the pig he was before his body hit the ground.

In a last-ditch effort to stop Skalidor, Kai scrambled to his hands and knees and pursued the reptile to the edge of the hole. I wanted to tell him to keep going, to pursue the bastard to the bowels of the earth, but I couldn't risk his safety because of my fury.

"Kai! No!" When he didn't slow down, another order was shouted. "Stop him, Jay!"

Diving headfirst for him, Jay succeeded in grabbing Nya's brash brother by the boots, preventing him from crawling in after the snakes.

Turning my attention back to Arwyn, I looked down to see that she had pressed her face against my vest to muffle her moans and had a fistful of my jacket and undershirt between the breastplates. I hadn't noticed until then that she also had a fistful of chest hair.

Zane was applying pressure to the wound around the arrow shaft with one of his folded arm wraps and securing it around her thigh with the other wrap. I cringed at the sight of her blood.

"There's so much…bleeding…" I was having a really hard time keeping from unraveling. "Did it hit an artery?"

The cool-as-ice ninja shook his head. "The femoral artery is located on the medial aspect—on the inside—of the thigh. The projectile is situated on the outside of her leg, having entered posteriorly. The hemorrhaging is not arterial, but we still need to get her home to begin treatment as soon as possible."

He motioned to the arrow. "And we need to shorten this shaft for a more comfortable transport."

That was something I could easily take care of doing. After snapping the wooden shaft between the fingers of one hand as if it was a twig, I carefully lifted Arwyn in my arms, murmuring to her as I did so.

Standing erect on the cobblestones while the rain continued to fall lightly around us, I found myself facing Jay and Kai. Jay's usual quirky grin was absent as he held out his arms. "Let me take her."

Frowning, I started to turn away with her, looking for my hastily-discarded Scythe of Quakes. "No, I—"

He stepped back in front of me. "Give her to me, bro. I can get her home fastest."

I frowned more, hesitating with an aching heart. Surely I was the only one who could take the best care of her… "Jay, I—"

"I _know_, Cole. I'd feel the same if this was Nya." He held out his arms again, more insistent this time, almost taking her from me.

I looked down into Arwyn's pale face as she squeezed her eyes closed and grimaced against the pain. Knowing he was right about all of it, I kissed her gently through my mask, told her how much I loved her, and unselfishly handed her over to another guardian.

_[Capisce=_understand]

**A/N: Please review, and have a great one! Namaste!**

**Dedication:**

**Rest in peace, Paw—beloved husband, father, and grandfather. You are missed.**

**1941—a loving, hard-working, and faith-filled life—2014**


	4. Tip of the Arrow

**A/N: Don't own anything Lego—except a few model-building sets! XP**

**Thanks so very, very much to everyone who left me the wonderful reviews on the last chappie! I love getting them, and I'd name everyone here, but it's late, and my brain is foggy! I really appreciate them, anyway! **

**And special thanks to everyone who soothed my soul with condolences. It means a lot to know there are tons of compassionate people out there. Namaste. **

**Hope you enjoy reading…**

**Chapter 4**

SHADOWSPAWN FOREST

****Cole's POV**

The ride back to the _Bounty_ on the back of the Blade Cycle was hair-raising to an extent, what with taking on the challenging, natural obstacle course that was Shadowspawn Forest at a high rate of speed, and all. Especially with Kai as the driver.

All of that, however, still failed to take my mind off of the fact that Arwyn had been wounded and was suffering because of that frickin' Serpentine general's need for revenge on _me_. _**Nothing**_ could distract me from that little tidbit.

"Can't you make this thing go any _faster?"_ I had a double, iron grip on Kai's back scabbard and an eye on his speedometer. Although we were already doing about sixty-five on a rough, forest trail the Treader had blazed less than an hour ago, I knew this thing could do more.

Veering to avoid an almost-unlucky squirrel that scurried, tail held high, across the damp, darkened path, Kai answered, "Only if you want us to get up close and personal with the over-grown flora and become literal tree huggers."

"The way you _usually _do things, that could happen at a _walking_ pace." I glanced over at Zane who rode at the same speed on his own trail that passed through the forest parallel to ours. "I feel like I'd be traveling faster if I got off of this thing and _ran,_ anyway."

"That can be arranged if you'd like, and I wouldn't even have to stop first," he retorted with a mix of amusement and impatience. "Geez, why did I insist you ride with me instead of letting you lose your focus worrying in the Treader?"

It was a mystery to me, too, as to why I had agreed to ride with him. Actually it had been at the insistence of Kai _and_ Zane. They'd both expressed concerns that I may not have been able to maneuver my larger vehicle with as much care as usual.

More precisely, Zane's exact words had been, "I will not have you driving your big-wheeled tank through that immovable, woody growth like your ass is on fire."

I was still in a mood about that. "I would've been fine. I'd _be_ there by now."

"We'll get there in a few minutes! Only about five miles to go." From his inflection, I could tell that I was trying what little patience he had. "You know you're _quite_ annoying when you've got your panties in a wad."

I leaned with him as he steered to miss a tree trunk. "You know _you're_ just quite annoying?"

"I try."

For the next couple of minutes, I stopped my grouching, and Kai concentrated on the trail. Fragments of grey sky soon began to show between the distant tree trunks, indicating the edge of the forest. The _Bounty_ and Arwyn weren't much further.

Shouting over his shoulder, Kai hopefully attempted to allay some of my concerns. "She's gonna be okay, you know."

I didn't say anything, not daring to be too optimistic, but praying that I was worrying for nothing.

Like the good brother and friend he was, he persisted. "I _promise."_

Following a friendly slap to his helmet, I vowed, "I'm gonna hold you to that."

* * *

A few short minutes later, I was sliding to a stop sideways in the below-deck corridor of the _Bounty,_ grabbing both sides of the doorframe into Arwyn's infirmary, and breathlessly pulling myself into it.

Sensei Wu and Nya stood at Arwyn's side where she lay restlessly fidgeting on the padded examination counter at the far side of the room. They had stripped her upper body down to her undershirt, removed her tabi boots, and cut her gi pants open from her ankle to her hip.

"Ugh! _Chichi,_ I-I don't think that d-disgusting tea you gave me is h-helping any!"

"Shh…You must give it time." Wu spoke softly to his daughter, trying to soothe her and keep her still while Nya was busily cleaning the soil of the _piazza_ from her leg with a disinfecting solution. "It has only been about five minutes since you drank it."

Either unnoticed or ignored by Nya, blood ran from the large, gaping gash in Arwyn's thigh from which jutted the broken arrow shaft. She was bleeding enough that it had collected on the vinyl exam table, and, although a towel had first been placed there, a crimson rivulet was trickling over the edge of the counter into a small puddle on the floor.

Blood. Not like I wasn't used to seeing it—but this was _her_ blood.

_**Her**__ blood_.

"Arwyn?" Nya turned toward the door when she heard my raspy utterance, throwing a couple of towels over the wound and puddle to prevent me from seeing it. She had to know from viewing my face that it was too late.

Removing my helmet and tossing it and my scythe on the cot, I hurriedly made it to Arwyn, while Sensei and Nya graciously moved aside, granting me passage without argument. I cupped her cool cheeks in my palms. Her hands gripped my elbows almost painfully.

"C-Cole!"

"My heart! I'm so sorry! I'm so _sorry_ this happened!" My fingers gingerly combed dampened tendrils of her wavy, black hair off of her brow and behind her ears as I rambled my apologies, wondering if her hair was moist from the rain or her tears.

A shaky breath preceded another grimace as she shifted her hips and leg on the counter, searching for a more comfortable position. "It's…not your fault! You _know _that. I-I'll be okay."

"She's right, Cole. This is _not_ your fault, so don't go beating yourself up over it." Accurately predicting the aftermath of this, Nya diligently went back to cleaning around the wound. "Jay already told us everything. At least Kai gave that creep a good pain in his ass!"

"There is no one to blame for this except the perpetrators." Though worry lines were carved into his aged face, Sensei Wu began trying to redirect me, patting me on the back. "This was all unforeseen, and, as I said not long ago, you cannot manipulate everything."

_Obviously._ The whole mess would've ended a lot differently if I _could_. Not only would this've _not_ happened, but if it had, I'd have caught that bastard and stripped every scale off of that sonovabitching devil by _hand_ while he was wide awake and begging me for mercy, then chopped him into tiny bits starting at the tip of his stinkin' tail before I had Kai make charcoal out of the pieces and buried what was le—

I felt the ship tilt far to starboard, and Wu answered my question before it was aired. "Jay and Lloyd are setting a course for the nearest hospital, which is going to be a journey of approximately fourteen hours from here."

_**Fourteen**__ hours before we get to a doctor_… I closed my eyes, and my forehead creased with regret as I bent and touched it gently to hers. Her skin was cool and damp, but not from the rain. Even as she shivered and breathed unevenly, she was also sweating, contending with the misery.

Kai and Zane's entry into the infirmary distracted me for just a second right after she proclaimed, "I c-can't wait that long."

Behind me, Zane began helping Sensei and Nya, making observations and giving subtle orders. "She is in shock. Kai, she could use your heat. Nya, if you do not mind allowing me, I will better assess the type and location of this projectile tip."

Straightening, I reluctantly moved aside to let Kai get to her to do his thing. He draped a cotton blanket over Arwyn's torso, tucked it around her shoulders, and elbowed me out of the way, snuggling over her, and saying teasingly, "Now _this_ makes up for that whole thing with Cole…"

"Watch it, bro," came out warningly, and I was about to pop him in the head for flirting at a time like this when I remembered what she'd just said. "Arwyn, what did you mean just now when you said you 'can't wait'?"

She squirmed under Kai's warming cuddle despite Wu's tea for pain. "This thing has _g-got_ to come out of m-my leg," she said without hesitation. "I-I can't deal with it much longer!"

So that I could see her while we talked, I drew Kai away from Arwyn with a hand on his shoulder, noting that it was already more heated to the touch than usual. At her thigh, Zane was saying, "This tip is barbed and buried deeply in the quadriceps, Arwyn. Removing it will require surgery."

"Right," I agreed with him, taking her quavering hand gently in both of mine. I hated denying her anything, but all we could really offer was support. "And you _know _none of us are surgeons. It'll have to wait until we get to a hospital."

"I know," she answered quietly, squeezing my hand hard as I stood by her side. Her brown eyes burning into mine, she blurted, "That's why you'll have to _p-push_ it through the rest of the way."

_I'll have to __**what?!**_

You could've heard a gnat fart with the sudden silence that blanketed the room around us. Totally taken off-guard, I stared at her, mouth gaping. "W-what did you _say?"_

My beloved's brow puckered while she got her thoughts together, then explained with amazing calmness, "From the angle it entered, it should come out in the front of my leg. If you push it through along the same path it shouldn't hit anything major." She said it as though she was describing how to make a roux.

Over my shoulder, she requested confirmation and support for her appallingly-ludicrous idea from our very-logical and usually-rational brother. "Right, Zane?"

Caught in the crossfire, Zane's translucent-blue eyes actually belied his surprise and discomfort as they flitted from me to her and back again. He finally addressed Arwyn with a nod of his blonde, flat-topped head in the affirmative.

"In theory, that is correct. It would, of course, have to be done very swiftly…and with great force." He had avoided it at first, but now gave me an apologetic look. "If that is what you wish."

"No…" I could only shake my head, hardly able to fathom what they were suggesting I do to her.

Sensei made an effort to talk some sense into her as he stepped in closer. "My daughter, it would be best if you waited to receive the proper treatment in a _proper_ setting—"

"I can't!" Her voice rose slightly. "This thing is killing me! I can't move, I can b-barely breathe without it hurting! And it's almost like there's something _else_—"

"I can't…" I gave Zane and Arwyn a dismayed look. "There's no way…"

Nya was at my elbow with a sympathetic hand on my upper arm. "Arwyn, do you realize what you're asking Cole to _do?"_

Tears rolled into the hair at her temples, and she pulled me in closer. "Yes. And I-I'm sorry, my heart, but you have to _help _me. It _has_ to come out."

I shook my head again. _No, no, no… _"I'm not _strong_ enough…"

"You're the strongest one. You can do it without any problem—"

"You don't _understand!" _ I gripped her shoulders firmly_. _"You're asking me to inflict horrible _pain_ on you! I _can't_—I don't want to _hurt_ you!"

She grabbed my arms, her fingertips pressing into the muscle. "I've got an _arrow_ in my leg! I'm _already_ in pain!" she reminded me like I'd forgotten, biting out the words. "Get it _out,_ or I'll get _Kai_ to do it!"

Kai's response to that was a little uncertain. "Uh…I don't _know_ about that…"

_What the __**hell**__ is going on here?! _Pushing away from the exam counter, I walked quickly toward the door, scattering the other occupants of the _Bounty's_ infirmary. Both hands rubbed over my face, then agitatedly ran back through my shaggy, disheveled hair.

Stopping at the threshold, I took a deep breath and let it out.

_How can she be asking me to do something like this, especially when she's conscious, when all I ever want to do is keep her from harm?!_

All was quiet in the little room. They all just waited for me to come to a decision.

… _If it'll help her … You gotta do this… _

"…Okay." Giving in, trying to seem better composed, I turned back to Zane and Arwyn. "Tell me what to do."

Sooner than I wanted, we were all in position and ready to extract the arrow from Arwyn's leg. Sensei had given her another cup of the pain-relieving tea she almost couldn't down, saying the taste was like rotten mushrooms buried under steaming manure. For all we knew, that's what it _was._

Zane had placed a mark at the front of her thigh for which I was to aim after Nya had cleaned the area with a combination of iodine and alcohol. He was clasping her lower legs and giving me last-minute instructions that I really didn't hear. Nya stood to the side, ready with Sensei to take over cleaning and dressing after the task was completed.

Kai was wrapping our patient snugly in the blanket, getting ready to pin her to the counter with his weight. As I tensely prepared to shove an arrowhead through almost three inches of my fiancée's well-developed muscle and silky, rust-tinted skin, I grudgingly listened to his low voice reassuring her that all would be well, that I'd get this thing out, and she wouldn't hurt so much, that it'd all be fine.

Gripping the shortened arrow shaft with my right hand, which only shook _somewhat,_ I leaned on her hips and held her knee with my left hand. I knew this was gonna make her react violently.

My stomach was promising to do the same, and my jaw set rigidly when I glanced up at Zane. He nodded solemnly for me to proceed.

_Time to man up._

"I'm sorry, my heart."

Arwyn's reaction was exactly as I'd expected when, without much warning, I thrust the metal arrow tip up through the center of the X on her leg as smoothly and quickly as I could, meeting almost no resistance. She arched up hard against us, her piercing yell sounding almost as bad as it had in the _piazza, _tearing through my soul.

Jerking the gleaming point from the new exit wound I'd created, I tried unsuccessfully to ignore the small gush of warm blood that followed it, flowing over the surrounding skin and covering my hand.

The powerful surge of her elements and the fact that I'd just jammed an arrow through my lover's leg had my stomach heaving slightly as I pushed past Zane and flung the steel arrowhead, clattering, into the sink.

Hunched momentarily over the stainless steel basin, I swallowed hard, trying to relieve my revulsion for what I'd just done. I could hear Arwyn gasping against Kai's shoulder as she tried to pull herself together.

_Get a grip, chickenshit, she __**needs**__ you…_

She was in my arms a second later, burying her face into the curve at my neck and collarbone, whimpering somewhat as I urgently muttered my useless regrets and comforting phrases against her hair.

Within a few minutes, we had both settled down more, and I was watching Arwyn as she contentedly rested in my arms with her eyes closed. Behind my back, Sensei and Nya cleaned and dressed her wounds, Kai stood by to help them, and Zane curiously examined the dart point.

Out of the blue, an oddly-amusing thought occurred to me. In a quiet voice so Sensei Wu wouldn't hear, I said to her, "I don't think I'll ever be able to get you pregnant."

Slowly opening, Arwyn's eyes focused on me questioningly. "Excuse me?"

My small grin was lopsided. "I'll never be able to survive the _birth."_

She blew a little laugh through her nose and closed her eyes again. After a moment, she lethargically raised her hand, resting it on my wet vest armor. "I feel so weak and tired." Inhaling deeply, she added, "Seems like an effort to take a deep breath."

I grazed my thumb and fingertips along her jaw, flicked her ruby-and-amethyst earring lightly. "That's probably from everything you've been through and Sensei's tea. Relax and sleep. We have a long trip ahead."

"Umm…" Her hand dropped wearily back down. "Thank you, by the way. I know that was hard for you. Sorry you had to do that."

"It's okay. It's all over." I shrugged even though she wasn't watching. "I would go to the ends of the earth and Ninjago for you…Besides that, you know you can get me to do _anything_ if you threaten to have _Kai_ do it for you instead of me." One corner of her mouth perked up briefly, then she was quiet as I guessed she was going to take my advice and nap.

I dropped a kiss on her forehead right when Zane's strong grip caught my arm. "We need to gather in the hallway."

Inquiringly, at Zane's silent bidding, Kai, Wu, and I followed him into the hall, leaving Arwyn to Nya's care. About halfway down the corridor, the ice ninja stopped under a wall sconce and turned to face us, eyeing me directly.

In the dim light, his skin seemed almost colorless, and his crystalline irises reflected something I could not remember ever seeing in them the entire time I'd known him.

Fear and alarm.

He didn't leave us hanging by pussyfooting around. "There is a chemical on the projectile tip…ourari—a plant-based neurotoxin—as well as something else I cannot identify."

"Poison?!" Kai's disbelieving exclamation shot down the empty corridor.

Sensei's voice came from my left. "Are you certain of this, Zane?"

_Poison…_

The dusty rubble of the ancient castle tower was crumbling, collapsing upon me once again, crushing me so that I had no strength at all, unable to breath or move, rendering me cold, speechless, my mouth parched, my eyes unseeing.

All I could do for a moment was simply stand there, like my legs were encased in concrete, just _knowing_ that I had heard him wrong, that his assessment was inaccurate, barely hearing the barrage of questions Kai and Wu were leveling at him, certainly not comprehending them.

Skalidor's words echoed in my head_. 'Just as you denied me my chance to have you, so you will now be denied the chance to have __**her!' **_

"Cole. Cole! Are you hearing me, understanding me?" Zane was shaking me by the shoulders. "This could _kill_ her!"

Conscious of my surroundings once again, I blinked hard at him, forcing a small amount of air between my vocal cords. "W-What does a neurotoxin do…exactly?"

His hands fell from my shoulders. "It will relax all of her muscle tissue to the point of paralysis—including her diaphragm—ultimately resulting in respiratory failure." Grimly, hesitantly, he finished. "She will…asphyxiate."

'…_so weak and tired… an effort to take a deep breath…' _

_Oh, God… It's already working… This __**can't **__be happening… I won't let her be taken from me…_

"Is there…a cure?" _Pleasepleaseplease_….

His head tilted. "An antidote may be available. Those who practice using these methods of killing are often quite likely to have some way of correcting their mistakes."

As far as I was concerned, the solution was simple. "Then, we have to get it."

"But _Skalidor_ did this!" There was venom in Kai's voice. "We'll _never_ find the snakes!"

Shaking my head, I stated with assurance, "The snakes don't have archers. They used a villager for this. The antidote—if there is one—will be in Sanctuary." _Please, God, let it be so_…

There was something else I might be able to get my hands on while we were in the village. "The archer will be there, too."

"Then we must get back there as soon as possible." Zane checked his comlink watch. "It has already been over an hour since she was injected with this, she will soon be exhibiting symptoms—"

"She already is." I faced our master, Arwyn's father.

Horror flashed on Wu's face, but he masked it almost immediately, abruptly heading back toward his quarters. "I will see if I can concoct something to slow the effects of the poison until you can get back."

"I'll get Jay to turn us around!" Kai exclaimed, already running for the stairway up to the main deck.

"Have him bring us directly over Sanctuary!" I called after him as I turned to go back to Arwyn with Zane trailing me. "We can't waste any more time!"

Every step toward the infirmary felt like my boots were made of granite while my heart was filled with dread. How was I going to tell her that her life might be hanging by a frayed strand with the shears of Fate positioned on either side, ready to sever it?

"Perhaps you should _not_ tell her about this. It would only increase her anxiety." Was Zane clairvoyant, or did he simply know me inside and out?

Several feet from the infirmary door, I stopped, staring straight ahead into the murky corners of the hallway. "I can't do that, Z. We don't keep secrets from one another, and I don't want her wondering why I'm not with her if anything gets worse." I slung away the urge to take the easy way out and keep her in the dark. "She needs to know what's happening to her."

Nya was cleaning up around the sink when Zane and I walked into the infirmary. "It's not like taking a shower, but at least the mud's off of you, and you're dry. I hope that helps."

A few weeks ago, Arwyn had commandeered one of my long-sleeved, button-front, linen shirts to use as a one-size-fits-all patient gown in the infirmary. Wearing it now with the sleeves rolled up, she was trying to prop herself up on her elbows while she spoke to our sister. "It does help tremendously. Thanks, Nya. I don't think I'd have the strength the stand up in the shower, anyway."

Her face lit up when she saw me, and my heart leapt in response, even as it ached at seeing her weakening and the large, white dressing that was wrapped around most of her thigh.

"Ah, two of my gallant men return! Why so glum?" She gave up trying to rise, finally lying back down as I got to her side. "So I'll be out of commission for fight training for at least a couple of weeks while this heals—darnit."

She laughed a little, but I was scarcely able to muster a crease in my cheek. "I'm certain, however, you'll find a way of drumming _some_ type of ninja schooling into me in the meantime, right?"

Taking her hand, I gave it a squeeze, trying harder to smile. "You know me." Taking up the discarded cotton blanket to discreetly cover her—although not for _my_ sake—I glanced toward Zane and Nya, seeing that he was about to pull _her_ aside.

"Come, let me take you to bed," I said as I lifted her from the counter, cradling her in my arms. Camouflaging a wince with an enticing wink, she rested her head on my shoulder and purred, "I thought you'd never ask!"

Arwyn's suggestion of a sexy tryst finally brought a bit of a smile to my lips as I carried her across the hall to her room and laid her gently on the bed. I heard the door close quietly behind us.

After getting her settled, I started to head for the little pine chair near the bed, but she snared my wrist. "Lie with me."

It was all I wanted to do, but…"I'm still wet and muddy—"

"I don't care. It'll dry." After I had spread the cotton blanket next to her on the mattress, I lay on my side facing her, propping my head up with a hand. She snuggled against me, not saying anything for a moment, while, out of habit, I absently fiddled with the buttons on the old shirt of mine that she wore, wondering how I was going to broach this terrible subject.

Her next, quiet question shattered the heavy silence and broached it for me. "There's something _else_ wrong, isn't there?" I cringed inwardly, and when I didn't answer right away, she went on, listing her reasons for asking. "I can sense it in all of you…Jay's turned the ship around…I don't feel right…" Putting a hand to my chin, she lifted it so I was looking right at her. "It's okay for you to tell me."

Feeling like I was condemning her with a death sentence, I whispered hoarsely, "There's a poison…"

Her eyes widened slightly in fright and disbelief before she closed them again, as though accepting of the judgment. Her lower lip quivered. "I knew it was something…"

Before I let myself be sucked down into the quagmire of grief, I spoke quickly, trying to sound positive. "Th-There may be an antidote! As soon as we can get back to Sanctuary, the guys and I'll drop down there and root it out. They _must_ have one, and we'll find it!"

She forced a little smile at my vow and, through glistening eyes, gave me a look filled with faith. "I know you will. You're wonderful at finding solutions for problems."

"I just can't seem to _prevent_ them," I admitted ruefully, fully shouldering the blame. "I've failed you again. I'm not able to keep you safe. Maybe if Sensei and I had never taken you from your clinic—"

"You mean like if we'd never _met,_ so I'd never had the time I've spent with you?" Hurt and alarm sounded in her voice, were shown in her face.

"Well, not _that!" _I corrected emphatically, lightly rubbing the knuckles of my hand along her cheek. "God, no, _never_ that! But maybe if you had at least stayed on the _Bounty_…"

She voiced the conclusion. "Then _you'd_ be the one in this position." She shook her head. "I _certainly_ wouldn't want that! You _haven't_ failed me. You simply can't always keep bad things from happening. They just _do_, with or without someone being at fault."

"We can't undo things that happen, only try to fix them or deal with them. I just—" She broke off, unexpectedly giving way to tears of fear and grief, placing both hands over her face and crying between them, "I'm not r-ready to die! I-I love you, Cole, I d-don't want to leave you! I'm _not_ _ready!"_

My arms swiftly found their way around her torso, pulling her securely, protectively against me. "You're not going anywhere, my life's heart! I'll do _anything_ and _everything_ I have to do to make sure that _doesn't_ happen!"

I knew I was putting in a tall order, but, at that point, I would have been willing to again bargain with the Serpentine, relinquishing my life and freedom—and _not_ double-crossing them this time—if it would save Arwyn.

We had a few more minutes alone, lying side-by-side together, her tears slowly drying against my shoulder as I fought back my own. While she clung to me, I held her as tightly as I could without hurting her, without making her breathing more difficult than it was already becoming.

What would I do if I couldn't deliver on my promises? I had counselled her several times already not to give up the fight if anything happened to _me_, but would _**I**_ have the strength to follow my own orders if anything happened to _her?_

A knock at the door was followed by a request from Zane to enter the room. "We've arrived. We are at a height of one hundred fifty feet and are ready to deploy. All we need is our leader." Over his shoulder hovered Kai and Jay.

"C'mon in, guys." I invited them with a motion of my head. Arwyn sniffled and wiped her eyes with a hand as they stepped awkwardly into the room. Though not willing to leave her, I knew we had a reason to move as soon as possible. I could see it in the way she shook when she made any attempt to move.

Trying to act as nonchalantly as I was able, I kissed her on the forehead, disengaged from her, and rolled out of the bed to stand beside it. "Okay, guys, time to get our well-wishes and shake a leg." _Time is of the essence…_

Zane moved forward first, gliding to the edge of the bed and bending over her to place his hand on hers. "This is not goodbye, my sister. We will not fail. Keep your courage up while we are gone." He kissed her tenderly on the cheek as her eyes teared up again, then moved aside for Kai take a turn.

"Don't get too excited on me, I'm just doing this for luck," the audacious fire ninja made an excuse for his actions before he planted a kiss directly on Arwyn's mouth. His ballsiness made her smile as he straightened up, smirking when he looked askance at me. Given the circumstances, I tried to ignore him. _You are __**so**__ lucky already…_

Jay stepped to her side next, looking far-too-glum for the Jay I was used to seeing. "Um, like Zane said, we're not gonna fail. We'll be back in time." Patting her, he started to turn away, but she reached out and caught his hand.

With a little grin, she said, "Kiss me, you fool."

Flustered by that for some reason, maybe because I was right beside him, he floundered for a second. "Uh, I don't know…Nya may not like it—"

"Kiss her, you fool," came from the doorway where Nya leaned on the doorframe with her arms crossed over her chest, a simper on her face. "And make it snappy, you have a job to do!"

Bending over Arwyn since he had permission, Jay's usual silly grin returned, and he pecked her on the forehead. "We'll bring you a souvenir! Maybe one of those snow-globe thingies."

She tried a laugh as he joined Zane and Kai, and they filed out of her room. "We shall wait for you on the deck," Zane informed me as he walked out last. I nodded, then turned back to Arwyn.

"I love you, my heart. I'll be back soon," I promised, taking her face in my hands for a soft, lingering kiss on her warm lips.

"I love you more, and I'll be waiting." She was seeming a little short of breath and doing her best to be brave. So was I.

I backed away toward the door, not wanting to let her out of my sight too soon, but I nearly bulldozed Lloyd as he was sidling in, A-Cappella in his shadow.

"Oops, sorry, Lloyd! Didn't see you there." Bearing a worried look, he said not a word to me, but headed for Arwyn's bed and climbed in, curling up next to her on the second pillow. A-Cappella scampered back and forth, undoubtedly annoyed at being too short to jump up on the mattress.

Pausing in the doorway, I sent Arwyn a wink, saying to Lloyd, "Take care of her while I'm gone." His somber nod made him seem so much older than he was, perhaps because of all he'd been through.

I ran up to meet the rest of my team, striving to not think about that or any possible poor outcomes. I had to do my utmost to keep my eye on the prize and hope for the best.

**A/N: FireIce, how did you get into my Word doc to find out about the poison? XD Hang around, though, I don't plan on this just being a clichéd, she-gets-hurt-and-they-rescue-her sort of story. There is a little twist to this ;) Please review!**


	5. The Archer

**A/N: No owning of Lego Ninjago and all that jazz...**

**I am so grateful to my supporters on the last chappie! I was afraid it wasn't gonna be well received,but thank you to Frosti1212, Anonymous, ForestBornNinjaGirl, FireIce, stupidvariousreasons, and EonstarII for letting me know it was okay and keeping me motivated! I so love hearing from you guys!**

**I hope you enjoy the read! Let me know what you think about this chapter as we get more into the meat of things...**

**Chapter 5**

_DESTINY'S BOUNTY_

****Arwyn's POV**

_Please come back to me safely… All of you._

As soon as Cole left me, a glaring cavern opened up in my soul, the presence of his element always being such a comfort to me. Since we were so infrequently apart, having him leave me now had me suffering his absence even more than I usually would.

Worriedly, I kneaded Lloyd's thigh where my hand lay beside his still figure on the bed. _Why didn't I stay on the _Bounty_ this morning? _ As much as I wanted to establish myself as a true member of the Masters' team, I really wasn't _that_ much in a hurry to join the fighting.

Maybe I _should've_ listened to Cole and not gone to Sanctuary, told Sensei I really wasn't very ready to join any missions yet, especially after the ordeal at the castle. That would've made me seem spineless and pathetic, but, at least _this _wouldn't have happened to me.

No, it would've happened to _Cole,_ and it would've unquestionably been much worse. With Skalidor intent on his hate-filled revenge, my love may have taken the arrow deep in his neck or chest, bleeding out before anyone could've done anything.

Or, had they wanted him to suffer with the poison, it would now be up to the guys and me to look for an antidote without our skilled, reliable leader to head our group.

Naturally, none of that was acceptable to me. If this was bound to happen to either of us, better that it was _me._ I couldn't bear to be without _him._

And yet, _he_ may soon be forced to live without _me._

Scattering my distressing ruminations like frightened birds, the jarring, distant tolling of Sanctuary's bell brought me back to awareness. A shudder coursed through me, and I prayed it wasn't a portent of more evil to come.

The pealing seemed to wake Lloyd from his musings as well. He stirred, then his small and vulnerable-sounding voice came from next to me. "Is it true that you could die?"

My neck muscles quivered when I lifted my head on the pillow to look at him. _**Is**__ it true? _"What did they tell you, Lloyd?"

"Not much," he admitted. "I was in the bridge with Jay when Kai came running in, freaking out, yelling for Jay to turn around and go back to Sanctuary, 'cause you had been poisoned, and they had to go find an antidote."

His eyes reflected how scared I was currently feeling. "When Kai saw me, he shut up and went and whispered with Jay, but I'd already heard it."

"So, is it really that bad?" The look on his face was begging me to deny everything, to say Kai was just making a really bad joke. What could I say?

I ran my fingers through his light-blonde hair, lightly scratching his scalp with my nails the way he liked me to do when he was getting sleepy and we were sitting together in the game room. "It's not good, honey, but there's always hope…"

Lloyd brightened a little at that. "Yeah. Like when we thought Cole was dead, but he wasn't, then he almost was for real, but we saved him!" He seemed to come to the decision that all would be well. "You'll be okay! Cole and the guys will take care of everything."

"They certainly will." _Chichi_ came in on cat feet, carrying his tea tray with its familiar teapot and accessories. "Her brothers will come back soon with the medicine Arwyn needs, and everything will be fine." He set the tray on the bedside table and made himself busy preparing tea for one.

"Now, let us have no more talk on this subject." Keeping his profile to us, our patriarch seemed a little agitated, although I thought he may have been trying not to show it. "Arwyn, I have steeped a tea that I would like you to drink quickly. Several cups of it would be best—"

"I hope it doesn't taste like the _last _one—"

"It matters not, you will _drink_ it," he said in a no-nonsense sort of way, leading me to believe that this was a more important tea than most, and he wasn't going to put up with any crap about such a frivolous thing as a nasty taste. "And, Lloyd, I believe the dance A-Cappella is doing at this moment would necessitate a walk up to the deck, please."

Probably recalling the deal he'd made with Cole_—'If I find __**one puddle**__ below deck, that fleabag's getting dropkicked __**back**__ to Dad's'_—Lloyd wasted no time in hopping off of my bed and bolting out of the room, calling needlessly for A-Cappella to follow in his wake.

It wasn't easy, but after putting my mind to it I was able to push myself up on one elbow, taking the elfin-sized cup my sensei handed me. "Hmm, must be powerful stuff for a cup _this_ small," I commented, sniffing the contents cautiously.

Sitting in the chair he had pulled up next to my bed, my birth father nodded sagely. "Never have I brewed a more important infusion."

The smooth rim of the cup rested at my lips for a second as I took in his flushed countenance and reddened, watery eyes. _Has he been…__**crying?**_ Seeing him as a father in danger of losing a child had my throat tightening, leaving me unsure that I'd be _able_ to drink the tea and bringing me, once again, to the verge of tears.

A vision of my parents in Miyagi, of not seeing them again, of them getting the news about my passing, darted through my psyche, stabbing at my heart. I shook it away promptly and tipped the cup.

Quickly gulping down the warm liquid that left a trail of fire down my throat, I grimaced, holding out the demitasse for the next round. "Aack. What's _this _supposed to do?"

"Buy you time," Sensei answered without further explanation, pouring more of the tea and handing the cup back to me.

"Maybe we should just cut out a couple of steps, and gimme a straw for the teapot." Another gulp, and I handed him the empty cup and watched him refill it. "Bringing the bathroom in here might not be a bad idea, either." _Chichi _showed no reaction to my halfhearted attempt at lightening the mood as he passed the little vessel back to me.

"Mavé also kept a positive attitude during her illness." The mention of my birth mother was like a jolt of electricity. He was thinking of an earlier loss in the past while trying to prevent one in the present.

"I don't plan on going quietly into the good night," I responded, paraphrasing a poem I'd read some time ago.

"And I will not have you going there before _I _do."

"How's our patient?" Nya's cheery question as she breezily came into the room kept us from going places with our conversation I had the feeling neither of us wanted to venture.

"Getting waterlogged," I answered, knocking back another thimbleful of the piquant tea.

"At least you're getting hydrated." Walking to the other side of my bed with a smile on her face that seemed a mite stretched, kinda like my nerves, she examined the dressing on my leg. "Hmm. I think we may need to change this pressure dressing soon. You're still bleeding."

Accepting _another_ serving of the tisane from _Chichi_, I grumbled, "I'm probably just leaking tea."

She flashed a realistic grin at Sensei before changing to a more serious air when she asked me, "How are you feeling?"

Avoiding my wizened father's eyes as I lay back down, exhausted, I informed them, "The pain's more tolerable, but I'm…getting weaker, and my breathing's shallower…respirations are increasing to compensate."

"The guys'll be back in time. You're going to be alright," was the only thing Nya could really say.

And I was doing the only thing I really had keeping me going at that point—hoping. Hoping that they would be able to find an antidote. Hoping that they could get it to me before my condition worsened much more. Hoping that Cole wasn't soon telling Ryo and Sora that he'd done all he possibly could do.

Rising from the chair, _Chichi _cleared his throat and gathered his tea paraphernalia onto his tray. Once he was done, he bowed over me, delivering a kiss to my cheek. I tugged on the end of his beard that I had caught in my hand. "Are you coming back?"

"Most certainly, very shortly," he stated, his eyes looking misty again, and left with his tray.

The door closed behind him, and Nya sighed. "He's not handling this well. While you and Cole were alone I went to ask him if he needed me to help him with anything. I found him sorting through his herbals, mumbling something, most of which I couldn't catch, but I thought I heard your mother's name."

She dabbed at her eye as she took Sensei's seat by the bed. "When he realized I was in the room, he tried to keep me from seeing, but I knew that he was crying. I think he's having memories of when he couldn't help _her,_ and now he's afraid for _you_."

More of my tears were threatening to be shed as Nya grasped my hand with her warm, compassionate one, attempting an uplifting smile. "You're going to be okay, Arwyn. I know Zane's right about there being an antidote, and you know _none_ of the guys will give up until they find it. _Especially_ Cole."

I nodded mutely, determined to keep my courage up like Zane had said to do. I had to have faith. It had worked back at the castle. It _had_ to work now.

"I won't leave you. I'll be here with you until the guys get back." Nya rose and moved uneasily around the end of the bed. "Is there anything I could get for you? Something to eat, maybe? You missed lunch…"

"No, thanks, Nya. I'm not sure my throat is strong enough to swallow anything other than a liquid… and I'm not hungry, anyway." My voice was even starting to sound a bit feeble to me.

"Yeah, you're probably full of tea and on edge, right?"

"No kidding."

Opening a drawer of the dresser, she asked, "How about getting out of that old shirt and changing into your night clothes—"

"No!" I was a little vigorous with that. "Sorry, but I'd rather stay in _his_ shirt…"

"I understand." She closed the drawer, seeming at a loss for anything else to offer a friend who may not be around much longer.

After a moment, I thought of something. "Nya, would you please get my ring from the carved box on the chest of drawers?" I didn't wear it when I worked or trained so I hadn't had it on this morning. Now I wanted Cole's engagement ring on my hand.

"Sure!" She moved quickly to retrieve it, after which she sat on the bed close to me and helped me place it on my ring finger. We quietly inspected the amethyst and rubies set on the platinum band while she continued to hold my hand.

"It's a beautiful ring. Cole's got awesome taste! He chose the perfect one for you. It'll go well later with a platinum wedding band, maybe something with a shape to it." From her lilt, I knew what Nya was doing, but I had to consider a possibly different future.

"Thank you. I'm sure yours will be just as lovely, or more so, when Jay gets it." She rolled her eyes a bit, but smiled.

"Nya, just in case I—" I paused, unable to complete that sentence. "Please make sure Cole takes this ring and keeps it. My earrings, too. I want him to have them…" A catch in my throat almost made it impossible to finish. "…as a memento of us."

Brushing away the tear that escaped down my cheek, she then dried the one on her lashes with a fingertip. Her lips pressed together before she squeezed my hand, saying, "Let's not think like that. There won't ever _be_ a reason for him to take this off of your hand."

I _so _wanted to believe that.

BELL TOWER, SANCTUARY, TWENTY MINUTES EARLIER

****Cole's POV**

Gripping the edge of the shingled roof, I swung myself, feet first, through the large window of the _campanile_, landing alongside Zane in a three-point stance. A quick glance around assured us that the place was vacant except for the bell and a few startled rats with wings.

I sidestepped out of the way to keep from getting kicked in the head when Kai and Jay swung through immediately after us, then went back to the window ledge to survey the village below. Above us, with Nya at the helm, the _Bounty_ pulled up and away several yards as a precautionary measure against boarders.

All of the bodies of the deserving Serpentine who had fallen at our hands had been removed from the _piazza,_ so it was empty. But, in the narrow, rain-slicked streets of the village moved several residents of Sanctuary, all of whom seemed to be well aware of our presence and looking for a hiding place by ducking into shops and homes.

"Gittin' while the gittin's good, eh?" observed Jay with a chuckle at my elbow. They could, I didn't care. We'd had no reason to sneak into this place, so we hadn't bothered, and they could run all they wanted, but they couldn't hide from us. We were gonna get what we came for…or else.

"Cole, several people and Serpentine have been here recently." Zane pointed out three different sets of boot prints and one slithering trail. "It is very likely that the archer stood exactly where you are right now." He gestured to the prints at my feet. "He would have had a clear shot down into the plaza."

It had quit raining while we were on the _Bounty_, so the multiple, reddish-brown, circular stains left here and there throughout the large, open area were still visible. From my vantage point, the spot created by Arwyn's blood, remembered by me as being closest to the well, was found easily.

My fingertips dug into the soft wood of the _campanile's_ window frame. _I'm standing exactly where the wannabe assassin stood… _

Imagining the coldhearted archer taking aim on Arwyn, deciding where to bury his arrow in her, brought a touch of nausea along with a vicious urge to get my hands on him and make him pay.

"What is our next move?" Zane's question put a stop to my virulent train of thought.

"We get down there and find someone who can lead us to the archer and an antidote." I headed resolutely for the stairwell.

Jay cut in enthusiastically. "Hey! Can I ring the bell?" He already had the rope in his hands.

Kai was following Zane and me to the way down. "Why not? They rang it on _us."_

I paused at the top step and waved him on. "Have at it. It can be a warning to _them _this time." Although we hadn't really _needed_ their help, the villagers had abandoned us in the fight against the Serpentine, then one of their own had wounded Arwyn, apparently doing Skalidor's dirty work.

Presently, I was feeling less than charitable toward these people.

At my go-ahead, Jay jumped on the rope like he was gonna climb it to the top of the belfry, forcing us all to cover our ears with our hands at the clamorous racket he created. Even he seemed a little surprised with how loud it was when he let go of the pull and hit the floor running, beating us all down the stairs.

Once we were down in the deserted _piazza,_ we took a good look around at the remote village. Most of the buildings were timber-frame constructions, some with stone first floors, all with plaster covering any infill between the wood beams. And every window was shuttered closed without a person in view.

Kai summed it up. "Quaint place. Too bad it's full of _really _unfriendly people."

"Yeah, you'd think they'd wanna thank us for running off Skalidor and his uglies." My blue brother did a three-sixty survey of the place. "Instead they try to kill one of us and disappear. Now what?"

"We start banging on doors looking for the mayor and the archer. And we _hurry."_ The _Bounty_ hovered overhead within my field of vision. "Arwyn doesn't have a lot of time." Crossing a puddle, I set my sights on a whitewashed entryway on the northern section of the _piazza _and tried to keep my mind on the task at hand.

The fire ninja was trotting for a building on the east side. "Instead of knocking on doors, how about we just knock 'em _down?"_

It was hard enough to hold _myself_ in check at this point. How much harder was it gonna be to keep Kai restrained, too? "Just spread out and find someone who'll cooperate! Let's try to play nice if we can."

_That _diplomatic way of thinking didn't last long with me.

Granted, I could understand the first two or three attempts at getting an answer to my hammering being unsuccessful. There aren't always people behind every door. But after the sixth or seventh door came up empty, I swear I was getting pretty fed up.

Enough was just about _enough_ when I found a home with an unshuttered window on the second street and saw the curtains flutter after I called at the door. Rapping on the window with a knuckle got no response, either. I was seriously starting to simmer.

_The last damned straw_ came at the shop door that opened a cautious crack to my pounding. "Oh, _finally!"_ I drew a breath of elation, preparing to pose a question to the occupant when he slammed the door shut in my face and rudely shouted, "Go _away!"_

"_You sorry sack of—!"_ I was furiously cocking back to put my fist through the two-inch-thick wooden portal when Zane called out on my comlink.

"Cole, I have tried sixteen doors on two different streets and have found no one willing to speak to me." Our teammates confirmed they were having the same luck. _What is __**wrong**__ with these frickin' villagers?!_

The time on my comlink indicated that I had left Arwyn nearly twenty minutes ago, flooding me with a critical sense of urgency.

_How much weaker is she by now…?_

"Meet me right now in front of that inn on the north side, guys."

Jogging down to our meeting site, I was joined in a few moments by the rest of my team who all verified that we didn't seem to be very welcome here.

About as frustrated and irritable as _**I**_ was, Kai declared, "This is _bullshit! _I'm seriously ready to kick down the nearest door, and I'm _not _kidding this time!"

Not usually the instigator of conflict, Jay replied nervously. "C'mon, Kai. We can't go doing _that—"_

"This time, Kai's right." I unsheathed my Scythe of Quakes and braced it like a staff at my side while I made one last inspection of the street in both directions. "This is getting us nowhere, and we're running out of time. I'm gonna make them an offer they can't refuse."

"Um, Cole—" I raised a hand, not giving Zane a chance to organize a committee on societal etiquette.

In the middle of the mucky street, I planted the butt of my scythe in the ground and shouted in the direction of the inn, thinking there must be _someone_ hanging out in a public place like that. "I _know_ you know we're here! I _know_ you don't want to talk to us, for whatever reason, but we're not _leaving_ this place until you do! I want your village leader out here _right now!"_

A moment of silence passed, with the only movement being that of Merlin as he flew over the rooftops, sent by Zane to look for any and all signs of habitation.

Up and down the street, my call went out again, this time stronger and louder._ "Again_—as the leader of _Podunk_, Ninjago, you should show a little backbone and get out here to talk to me! I'm not putting up with this for much longer, and I am _definitely_ not going to _beg!" _

Still nothing. I was swiftly getting to the end of my rope like it was covered with axle grease. I glanced at my team, who waited expectantly, then at the empty street around us.

_Alright, that's two strikes on you people_… _One last pitch with all I've got_…

"You saw how easily we were handling those Serpentine! It would take _nothing_ for us to bring you _all _to your knees!" On my left, a few feet away, Zane shuffled, maybe not liking where I was going with this.

Hefting my Spinjitzu weapon with both hands over my shoulder like I was about to take the last swing at a teetering redwood, I all but roared, _"Your leader has __**five seconds **__to show his face to us, or I'm gonna use this thing to reduce this village to a pile of __**garbage!"**_

"Cole!" Zane stepped toward me with a definite note of disapproval in his voice. "I _know_ you are upset, but you must _not_ let your emotions override your rationale at a time like this!"

"Let _me_ handle this, Zane!" I rumbled his way lowly.

"Think of Arwyn! She would _not_ want you doing something like this, not even for _her_ sake!"

"_I'm thinking of nothing __**but**__ her!_" At my wit's end, I was almost literally hearing Arwyn's clock ticking down in my ears. I knew I couldn't do what I was threatening, but I was running out of alternatives. I took a calming breath. "We need results _now_, or I'm gonna—"

"Cole! To port!" I turned my attention to the left at Jay's call.

A heavyset, grey-haired man was exiting a house onto the sidewalk several doors down from us. On his arm clung a thin, crying woman. He pushed her firmly away and sent her back into the home, stepped into the street and approached us slowly.

It had taken my empty threat of trashing the entire village, but at least we were getting somewhere.

"At ease, chief." Kai sloshed through the mud to stand at my side, his eye on the man down the street, his hand on the shuriken in his belt.

The scythe came off of my shoulder, but remained ready to wield. "Stay with me." With a finger, I gestured to Jay and Zane, and, at once, the masters of lightning and ice took up stations on either side of the street, covering Kai and me in the center.

Taking his sweet time, the older man eventually got close enough to us so that I could see the color of his eyes and the split, purple lip he sported. He stopped several feet from Kai and me, looking down his nose at us. That was really rubbing me the wrong way.

Well under six feet tall, in brown trousers and a vest worn over a once-white shirt and a beer gut, he eyed all of us with irate suspicion prior to speaking with a holier-than-thou attitude. "I am the _soncho_, the elected head of this village of Sanctuary. What business do you propose to have with us?"

_Good start, little boss man. Marking your territory and trying to make us feel like trespassing punks… You can bow up all you want, it __**won't **__work with me…_

Feeling pretty pissy myself, and _very_ mindful of the time flying, I boldly kept my eye on him as I gave him an obligatory bow. "We are students of Sensei Wu." His expression changed for a half a second like he recognized the name.

"Lemme make a long story short. When we were here earlier, answering your call for help and fighting to rid _your_ village of the Serpentine, one of your bowmen shot one of _my_ team members. I want to talk to that archer!" I was trying to be civil, but I couldn't help that I was oozing hostility.

One eyebrow went up, and he reacted with his patronizing air. "Yes. I recall your group coming earlier. Thank you for your…help."

Somehow he found his belt under all of that belly and hooked his thumbs in it, one hand brushing against a six-inch dagger. I got a doubtful look from him like I was full of it. "I am sorry that one of your team was injured, but how do you _know_ it was one of _my_ archers, and for what _possible_ reason would you want to speak with him?"

Without being told, Kai eased himself around behind the man the moment I took an abrupt pace forward, my scythe in both hands, my voice rising. "We _know_ it was an archer from this village! The Serpentine don't _have_ archers! And don't you worry about _why_ we want him! Present him! _NOW!" _

His anemic complexion reddened, and rheumy, bloodshot eyes bored into me challengingly. "You cannot prove—"

My gloved hand was in and out of the pouch on my belt in a heartbeat, whipping out the fletched end of the arrow stained with Arwyn's blood and shoving it almost under his nose as I marched right up to him in the street. _"This'll_ prove it _for_ me! Bring out the _damn_ archer and his quiver!"

The _soncho _stood his ground, the only clue that I might be getting to him being a light sheen of sweat that broke out over his forehead and upper lip. "If you are here for retaliation after an _accidental _shooting—"

Running out of patience, and proving to have less restraint than _Kai_ on this trip, I jerked the blade of my scythe upward, placing its blunt edge a little roughly under the man's stubbly chin. He took a surprised step backward, bumping into Kai who, in one long stride, had moved closer to the village leader in anticipation of cutting him off at the pass.

In my peripheral vision, Zane and Jay went into defensive stances when the woman who had been with the _soncho_ let out a scream from her doorstep, and several village men finally appeared from their hiding places. None of them advanced more when they noticed the armed ninja flanking Kai and me who were daring them to interfere.

Reining myself in with every ounce of self-control I could scrape together, I kept the scythe blade under his chin and laid it on the line for the village leader, my face inches from his, a dangerous edge in my tone.

"If we were here for _that,_ this place would in _ruins_ right now, _everything_ would be leveled, and what still stood would be _burning! _ I don't _want_ to cause trouble, I just need to talk to the _bowman!_ Do this the easy way, and frickin' get him _out here!_ We don't have _time_ for this nonsense!"

Everything and everyone was silent around us as the elder and I tried to outstare one another for a long moment, neither of us willing to back down.

Unable to wait me out, the defiant mayor decided to piss me off, instead, grumbling, "You ninja think you can come in here and threaten us like _bullies_ to get what you want, _hiding_ behind your masks like _cowards—"_

_What the __**hell?!**_

Dropping the blade of my scythe from his jaw, I stepped away from him like he'd thrown a punch at me. "I'm no _bully_, nor am I a _coward!_ You wanna see my _face?!"_

Tearing off my mask, I revealed my outraged snarl, scarcely noticing that my brothers were doing the same. _"Here_ it is! Get an eyeful!" We exchanged fuming, black glowers for a few more seconds. "Now get the archer out here! _Immediately!"_

Wisely coming to the conclusion that I wasn't going anywhere any time soon, the _soncho_ reluctantly gave in and wrenched his heated scowl from mine. To a stout man in a dirty apron who was framed in the door of the inn, brandishing a meat cleaver in each hand, he made a motion to stand down.

Kai still breathed down his neck as the mayor turned back to me, this time less antagonistically. "If you are allowed to speak with the archer, will you then leave us in peace?"

We were finally making some progress. _**"When**_ I am able to speak to him, _and _get what I came for, yes. We will shake the dust of this godforsaken Nowhereville from our boots and _never _come back."

The plump man stepped from between Kai and me, grunting, "Then come with me."

My boots squished into the mud as I followed the _soncho _down a side street with the guys in a line tailing us. Quickening his gait to draw up even with me, Kai spoke quietly. "I thought you did a good job back there, even if the Ethics Board thinks you violated policy and procedure."

Over my shoulder, I viewed Zane's unreadable countenance and sighed jadedly. "I only did what I figured he'd respond to best. I'll take my slap on the wrist later."

It didn't matter. It didn't matter that Zane may have thought I was a little harsh with my threats. It didn't matter that Sensei might chastise me for letting my anger and frustration get the better of me.

I glanced back at where our home drifted over the center of the tiny town. The only thing that mattered was getting what Arwyn needed, and if I could do that, then I didn't care what else happened.

Besides, I didn't really think I had done such a bad thing. At least I hadn't given in to my first impulse, which had been to wrap my hands around the irritating troll's neck and wring it for him.

"Thanks for backing me right away." I had to give Kai his due. "And I saw you disarm him by filching his dagger. Make sure he gets it back."

"As _if _I'd keep it. It's a crappy blacksmithing job," he said, like he could've done better. "I'll slip it back in his sheath before he even notices it's gone." I knew he could.

The march to the archer's location seemed to take us forever, but I was entertaining myself along the way with images of what I would do to the guy when I stood face-to-face with him. None of my ideas would have been condoned by Sensei, or Arwyn for that matter, but what they didn't know wouldn't hurt them. As long as I could keep my brothers quiet…

When I started to think that the village chief was gonna take us out of town, he finally went up to the door of a single-story residence and pounded on the red-painted surface.

Not bothering with formalities when the sandy-haired, middle-aged head of the household opened the door wide, the _soncho_ said tersely, "Akira, these men want to speak to Yumiya." Although the man named Akira seemed unhappy with that idea, he quickly disappeared inside the house.

As we waited outside, I avoided my brothers' eyes, keeping my attention on the open door, telling myself over and over that it wouldn't be right to beat the crap out of this guy the instant he stepped into the dingy daylight, no matter how much I wanted to do so. If I did that, he may not be conscious enough to tell us where the antidote was.

When I thought I could wait no longer, the archer we sought was brought to stand before us on the sidewalk. The jittery, lanky boy of about fifteen or sixteen years with closely-cropped, auburn hair wearing darkly-tinted glasses was _absolutely_ _not_ who I had expected.

Jay blurted some of what I was thinking. _ "You're_ the archer? No offense, but do you aim with sonar or something?" Ever-courteous Zane stuck an elbow in his ribs.

Finishing my thoughts, Kai wasn't within the ice ninja's reach. "Aren't you a little _young_ to be trying to kill people?"

"He hasn't killed anyone!" Akira jumped to his defense giving the boy a little more nerve to speak up. "No! I was only shooting at the snakes!"

"Really?" My dark look conveyed I wasn't falling for it. "You already forgot that you hit my team member in green?" His face went a little whiter at my accusation. To the man I presumed to be his father, I demanded, "I want to see his quiver. Where is it?"

A motion from the tall, older man sent the teen into the house, coming back a moment later with the bamboo cylinder filled with yellow-fletched arrows. Holding out the end of the blood-covered arrow, I proved it was a match to the dozen or so in the young bowman's quiver.

He immediately began to stammer his excuses under the watch of the observant _soncho_. "I-I thought he was a snake! I was trying to help! H-He was in green, like some of the snakes! It was just a mistake! I-I _swear!" _I wasn't buying _that,_ either.

From between clenched jaws, I started angrily, "You _little_—" but stopped when Jay cleared his throat behind me. "You didn't_ notice_ that she was at my back, but fighting _**with**_ me?!"

Yumiya couldn't answer that, prompting Zane to cut in. "We have _no time_ to argue. We simply need to know about the substance on your arrow points."

Akira's lean face showed he clearly understood the issue at hand. "The dark poison! You were using it?!" The boy nodded warily, and the sympathetic man beckoned to me. "You need the antidote! Come with me!"

"There _is_ one?!" _Thank God!_

"Ha! _If_ your teammate is even still _alive_…" The amused sneer on the village official's battered face nearly got him more battering, but it vanished in a flash when his dagger penetrated the ground between his feet with a solid 'thunk'.

"C'mon. Let it go. He's not worth the trouble." Kai grabbed my sleeve and towed me in the direction Zane and Jay were taking as they ran after Akira and his son around the nearest corner.

A couple of doors down the intersecting street, I was entering a small, darkened chemist's shop after everyone else had hurried in, leaving Jay standing guard in the street in case of trouble.

The tinkle from the bell over the door faded as my eyesight adjusted to the gloom, and I took in the cramped and dusty interior lined with shelves crammed with variously-sized and –shaped glass bottles and jars. At the counter on the far side of the room, Akira, with his teenaged son behind him, slapped on the worn surface and shouted for the proprietor.

From a side room I could hear a male's annoyed call to "Hold your frickin' horses!" I was anxiously lining up with Zane and Kai at the counter when a burly, ruddy-complected man lumbered into the space behind it, muttering to himself. Spying three ninja in his shop, he grouched at our guide, "What the hell is _this?"_

The slighter man didn't bat an eye at the chemist's crude greeting. "Yumiya used the dark poison on his arrows, and a teammate of these men was injured with it. They need the antidote."

The shopkeeper's façade became guarded, and he gruffly started to decline the request. "I don't have much in stock—"

It was so close, I could just about taste it, but this crotchety man was gonna deny us the _antidote?!_ I whacked the countertop hard with my closed fist, causing the archer to draw back as I demanded, "Give us what you _have!"_

"Please?" With his soothing tone, Zane took a shot at softening my order so it would sound less like an ultimatum.

"NOW!" Kai, however, with his gloved hand on his sword hilt and a look that could kill on his face, was more on track with my meaning.

The archer's father pled our case. "You must give it to them. We can't let the ninja die. They came to help us."

After first regarding Akira, then Zane, Kai, and me, the surly chemist grudgingly turned and trudged unhurriedly back through the side door into his storeroom. In silence, we waited with bated breath, listening to him rummaging around for what seemed like an eternity, our apprehension and impatience nearly becoming palpable.

My nerves were so raw, I felt about ready to jump the counter and rush into the storeroom to threaten the chemist with severe bodily harm if he didn't produce something soon. Luckily for both of us, he finally appeared with a small, blue vial held in his short, pudgy fingers.

I could barely wait to get my hands on the miniature flask that held such vital contents—a potion which would save the life of my beloved and the destined defender of Ninjago. Leaning over the counter as the chemist approached, I extended my arm to take the vial, expecting him to give it to me right away.

Instead, the chubby, little man jerked it out of my reach, making me catch my breath in surprise and indignation at his gall. Placing both hands solidly on the counter, my eyes narrowed at him under my thick, knitted brows as he bared his decaying teeth smugly. "That will be five gold pieces. Pay up."

With the speed and grace of a panther, Kai unsheathed the Sword of Fire and leveled the tip of its blade under the bulbous nose of the shopkeeper. His eyes glinted wickedly. "This enough gold for you? Should pretty much cover it, don't you agree?"

The chemist's terrified eyes crossed as he stared at the unwavering tip of the golden sword for several awkward seconds, then, without moving anything else, he slowly held the glass container out to me. I snatched it from him with a concentrated frown, swiftly placed it in the leather pouch on my belt, and swiveled toward the exit.

As I strode to the door, intent on getting back to Arwyn as fast as I could, I heard Kai say, "One more thing…I think we need a little insurance that this is the right antidote." Looking back, I saw him get a hold of the back of the startled archer's neck. "How'd you like to be a guest on a flying ship, kid?"

"No!" Akira strongly protested the hostage-taking. "You cannot! There is no reason to take him! I swear it is the correct serum!"

I met Zane's look of uncertainty and considered contradicting Kai, but then changed my mind. "Not a bad idea. You'll get him back if this works." The notion of what it would mean if it _didn't _work sent my rising mood from procuring the antidote into a nosedive.

_I can't think like that! _Yanking the door open, I stepped out onto the sidewalk, hearing Nya over Jay's comlink as he stood with his back to the shop about two yards away.

"…really worried about Arwyn. She can't lift her head, her extremities are really weak, and her breathing's awfully shallow and rapid. I don't know how much longer—"

_Arwyn! She's deteriorating __**that **__fast?!_

My scythe was off of my back in a split second, and I was sprinting into the street toward the center of the village, shouting back to Jay, "Tell her to drop the anchor over the _piazza!_ I'll be there in half a minute!"

A burst of light, and I was in the Treader, heading down the narrow, muddy passage as quickly as I could go, praying that we weren't too late for this medicinal remedy to work.

**A/N: Remember, I want to hear from you! Please review!**


	6. Agony of Restraint

**A/N: Still haven't gotten the deed to Ninjago...**

**Extreme gratitude goes out to those who help me so, so much by reviewing and keeping me going! I really need it some days! Thank you, ForestBornNinjaGirl, FireIce, Coleswagger14, Anonymous, MoonBlazer, Frosti1212, and stupidvariousreasons! I don't know what I'd do without you!**

**This chappie was a struggle as I fought hard to get the emotional setting just right, and I'm still not completely satisfied. Please let me know how I did!**

_DESTINY'S BOUNTY_

****Cole's POV**

_Oh, my God… __**Please **__let me get to her in time… let this work…_

The precarious climb up the wet, slippery anchor chain seemed to take me forever as Nya's words spoken over Jay's comlink kept repeating themselves like a broken record in my head.

…_don't know how much longer… don't know how much longer_…

_How could she have gotten so much worse in so little time? _

It had been less than three hours since Arwyn was hit with the arrow, and Nya was already reporting that she was having trouble breathing and could barely move anything?

_What kind of **'**__**dark' **__poison __**is **__this?! _

At last reaching the _Bounty's _gunwale, I hauled myself over it, being extra careful not to shatter the vial in my belt pouch, and hit the clean, water-darkened deck running, leaving a trail of muddy boot prints as I went. Halfway to the below-deck staircase, Nya intercepted me, catching my jacket to slow me.

"Cole, wait—"

My hand on her wrist, I pulled her with me. "I can't, Nya, I have to get to her—"

"Just stop a second! I need to prepare you!" The worry in her words had me obeying, anxiously looking down into her troubled features.

Immediately assuming the worst, although I could still feel Arwyn's elemental ember, I seized her slender shoulders as the rhythm of my heart faltered. "Nya, is she—did she—?!"

_Please don't tell me…_

She understood my fear right away and shook her head. "No, no! She's still here, but she's not doing well! I don't want you to be scared when you see her, Cole, but she really doesn't look good, and…she _knows _how bad things are. She dictated letters to me for her parents, Sofiya…and you."

_Oh, God… She believes she's dying… _

Leaving Nya on the deck, I leapt the steps down to the corridor, landed lightly, and ran the rest of the way to Arwyn's bedroom. There I was hit with the heartrending sight of her, and the comprehension of the gravity of the whole situation nearly brought me to my knees.

My soul's mate lay very still under the bed quilt with her head on the pillow, eyes closed, her face expressionless with a sickly, yellowish hue. Her upper abdomen rose and fell with her breathing, twice as fast as normal, but only slightly noticeable.

… _il mio cuore carissima… santo Dio, no…_

Our sensei was keeping watch in the chair next to her bed, his bare head bowed. His wrinkled hand, a daddy's loving hand, clenched hers.

On her other side, in the center of the bed, Lloyd was stretched out, reading aloud from one of his graphic novels, just as he, Arwyn, and I sometimes did in the evening. In between the two of them nested A-Cappella who was fixed on licking her hand and arm as though the affectionate gesture would soon have her up and filling him with snacks.

Pulling off my helmet with a trembling hand, I carelessly dropped it and the scythe at my feet, capturing Sensei's attention. While next stripping off my gloves with my teeth, I nodded at his hope-filled bearing. "We have the antidote." His grateful sigh of relief put a bigger lump in my throat.

Nya entered the room after me and went directly to the far side of the bed, shooing Lloyd and A-Cappella off of it while I took a knee at Sensei's feet next to Arwyn. Taking her hand in mine, I noticed right away that she was wearing my engagement ring, my promise for a brighter future, a promise I prayed I'd be able to keep.

I kissed her cool palm, caressed her ashen face. She slowly opened her eyes and gave me a frail smile. "Cole… my life's heart…" The whisper from her lips was almost inaudible.

"I came back as quickly as I could." My voice cracked as I said it. "I've got the antidote." Fumbling with one hand, I retrieved the tiny ampule from the pouch at my waist. "You're gonna be okay."

_Pleasepleaseplease…Or I don't know what I'll do..._

Her soft breath was rapid. "I knew…you'd come…through…"

Nya had been right to try to prepare me for Arwyn's steadily deteriorating condition. This was much worse than I had anticipated, something I hadn't expected or been ready to face.

Seeing her like this, suffering with the pain, so very weak when she was usually so very strong, barely able to breathe, so close to death—and knowing that _she_ knew it… I was in misery, profound agony.

Skalidor was succeeding in punishing me cruelly for deceiving him at the castle and escaping him several times before that. Why didn't he simply kill me outright, or injure me so that I bled out slowly or bore extreme physical pain? It would have hurt much less.

Instead, he had chosen to inflict this brutality on Arwyn. He was making me watch her go through what should have been _my_ trial.

_I wish he had just pierced my chest, instead of piercing my soul._

How had the cold-blooded reptile, lacking any understanding of love for another, compassion, or empathy, been able to guess that it would be such overwhelming torture for me?

Not wanting her to see my anguish, I rested my forehead on Arwyn's shoulder, closing my eyes tightly to hold back the tears that burned so much, trying hard to keep from falling apart in front of her.

Her warm, light panting came against the top of my head. "Don't hide…your beautiful… face… It's okay… I _know…_ it's bad."

Lifting my head to meet the brown-eyed gaze of my sweetest friend, I felt the tears slipping over my cheekbones, caught the hint of a sad smile.

"Hold…me…"

She didn't have to tell me twice. I was gathering her into my arms, careful not to hurt her more, when my brothers trooped into the room, pulling Yumiya with them.

Seeing the bowman gawking at her from behind his dark, concealing glasses almost had me growling. I checked myself and held out my fist, opening it to reveal the priceless, blue vial, and asking brusquely, "Do I have to do anything special with this?"

As if he didn't hear me, the archer pointed at Arwyn, asking with what sounded like dismay, _"This_ is who I hit?!"

Kai gripped his shoulder hard. "Her name is _'Arwyn'_, and we'll do the formal introductions later! _Answer_ the man!"

The teen acted somewhat at a loss for a second. "Uh… Just have her…drink it. It should work within a couple of hours."

"Get him out of my sight." Kai readily carried out my snarled order as I bit the cork of the flask, deftly pulling it from the neck. With care, I held Arwyn across my lap, supported against me in the crook of my elbow, and brought the mouth of the bottle to her lips.

The whole room went utterly quiet, save for occasional words of encouragement from Nya and my efforts to wear out the phrase _'I love you' _as I administered a few drops at a time, and Arwyn worked hard at swallowing them.

Drained of what energy she'd had, she closed her eyes and drooped back in my arms when the contents of the vial worth a king's ransom to us had at last been consumed without wasting a drop.

As I held her close to me, safe in my arms, in a low undertone, with my lips on her temple, I begged God to spare her life, to heal her quickly, promising Him I'd do anything. _Anything._

A hand stroking the hair at the back of my head soon reminded me that, as much as I wished it, Arwyn and I weren't alone. Nya still sat on the other side of the bed, watching us with sad compassion. Sensei's fatherly touch was on my neck. "The others have gone to clean up and eat."

With a pointed look that warned me not to argue, my master instructed, "Go, and do the same. Nya and I will change these muddy sheets and make Arwyn more comfortable while you are gone."

Even though the last thing I wanted to do was leave her, I knew the sooner I did as he bid me, the sooner I could be back. A feathery brush of my lips against Arwyn's accompanied a vow to return as fast as I could, then I settled her on the pillow and was out the door.

Jay was in the shower, and Lloyd, Kai, and Zane were all hanging out in the bunkroom, but what little conversation had been going on ended when I got in there. I knew Yumiya was with them, too, and the idea had me steaming so badly that I kept my eyes on the floor and hastily collected a clean set of clothes before getting to a shower.

_I __**hate**__ that he's here!_ _We should have __**left**__ his ass in that piss-ant town!_

Zane _had_ to have sensed that the presence of the archer was part of the reason I was in such a snit. Even so, he unwisely decided to rub him in my face as I made to leave the bunkroom for the women's bathroom. "Yumiya says that we were avoided in the village because of repeat invasions by different groups over the years. They no longer trust anyone because of this."

Skipping over the middle man, I eyed the villager standing near Zane with skeptical irritation. "That's _no_ excuse! You _saw_ us fighting the Serpentine to protect your people only a couple of hours before we were there the _second_ time! You all _knew_ we weren't there to _loot_ the place!"

Yumiya said nothing, turning his head to avoid my verbal assault, but he wasn't getting out of it that easily. Briskly striding up to him, I stood where he couldn't miss me. "And if it weren't for _you_-" I gave his sinewy chest a little shove with my fingertips. "We would not have _had_ to return, and Arwyn would be _fine_ right now!"

He nervously backed away from me, putting himself against the wall. "I-I _told_ you I mistook her for a snake! You were _surrounded_ by snakes! I-It was to _help _you! I wouldn't have h-hit her otherwise!"

My hands curled into fists at my sides, and keeping my voice lower than a yell as I pressed him for something believable was taking all I had. "Are you frickin' _sure _about that?! You didn't think it was _odd_ that she wasn't trying to _attack_ me?"

Yumiya had no other response than to turn his gaze to the floor. Zane gave him a brief respite when he stepped between us, throwing me an annoying cautionary look which I huffily ignored, side-stepping him to keep the boy within my sight.

Kai took care of our icy brother, pulling him to the side by the sleeve. "Let him be, man, he's totally justified. And you're in my way. I wanna see this."

Zeroing in on the archer, I vented some bottled up stress, finally giving way to a loud and well-deserved ass reaming. "If this was a _mistake_, then you're _way_ more dangerous than you _think_, kid! You shouldn't be so quick to take a shot! Next time, _know_ your damned target before you bury an arrow in an innocent person!"

The way he shrank back against the wall was kinda gratifying, but made me feel guilty as hell at the same time.

"If she _dies_—" I almost choked on the words. Snapping my mouth shut, I took a step back, putting both hands in my hair before I got carried away and put them on _him._

_Don't touch him, Cole. Don't touch him, don't touch him, or you might lose it on him…_

I was quickly replaced by Kai, who seemed to enjoy the chance to get in his face. "Maybe it's that you can't see _squat _since you're covering your eyes with those _frickin'_ sunglasses! Why are you even _wearing_ those things? Take them off!"

The bowman's hand flew protectively up to the black frames. "I-I need them."

"Really? Now why would _that_ be?" Lifting a dubious eyebrow, Kai moved to within an uncomfortable few inches of the boy's face, squinting nosily through the nearly-opaque lenses. "You're an archer, so you _can't _be _blind._ And you _don't_ need sunglasses below deck."

Yumiya leaned away from the firebrand, but really had nowhere to go. "M-My eyes…they're…the light hurts them."

_Something's not right…_

"Well, what do you know? We can remedy _that."_ Stepping to the single window, I closed the blinds over the porthole, and jerked my head toward the switch plate by the door to the hallway. "Lloyd, kill the overhead!"

The blonde boy jumped to carry out my directive while Zane reached for the small lamp on the dresser and lit the bunkroom with its soft light.

The door to the bathroom was flung open, and Jay emerged, his body glistening, his hair plastered to his head. Tucking in the corner of a towel he had rushed to wrap around his hips, he asked, "What's with all the hollering in here? What am I missing?"

Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Kai, both of us towering over the bowman, I crossed my arms over my chest and said sternly, "Now take them _off._ I want to see what you have to hide."

Yumiya looked like a cornered animal, searching for a gap, ready to bolt. "I-I have nothing—"

"Don't make me _rip_ them off your face!" Kai burst out impatiently, making him flinch.

"Heh! Which one of them's supposed to be the _good_ cop?" was Jay's smart-aleck comment to Zane behind us.

Unwilling though he was, the boy showed some good sense and decided to give us what we wanted, slowly removing his sunglasses and allowing us a full view of his face.

And his vertically-slit pupils surrounded by yellowed irises and sclera.

"Snake eyes?" Bewildered, I dropped my arms and looked to Kai to find him staring intently at the archer like he recognized him from somewhere.

The fire ninja grasped the meaning of the disfigurement before I did. "Your name's not 'Yumiya', is it?! That's just a nickname meaning 'bow and arrow'!"

Getting a fistful of the teen's shirt collar, he pushed him fully against the wall, his voice rising. _"You're_ the guard from the castle, aren't you?! The one we _didn't_ kill, the one we helped outta there—_**Hiro**__!"_

My mouth dropped open, and I felt my face go red with anger. "You _lied_ to us?! We spared your life—_twice!_ You left the tower with Arwyn, and you did _this _to her?!"

When I made a move toward Hiro, I felt Zane's vice-like grip fasten on my shoulders, heard his reproving utterance of my name which made me think twice about getting within arm's reach of the bowman. Forcing myself to remain under his hold, I somehow kept from screaming out at Hiro when I commanded heatedly, "Tell me the truth! Why did you _do_ this to her?! Tell me _everything!"_

Although seeming sufficiently frightened, he remained silent, prompting Kai to yell, "You remember all of those snakes we left lying in the dirt in that tower, right? _You_ could have been one those! But we let you go, and _this_ is how you repay us?! We should have given you the same treatment as all the others!"

Something in his viper-like eyes suddenly changed, and the glasses fell from his hand as he grasped Kai's wrist. "No! I'm sorry! I'll give you the honest truth! They _made _me do it! Our _soncho_ cut a deal with the snake general to get him to leave the village!"

His weird gaze aimed at me when he spouted, "The general said you owed him for nearly killing him and tricking him out of getting control of you at the castle! At first, he wanted _you_ to die, _you_ were supposed to be my original target! But then you showed up with _her_, and he changed his mind, saying he knew he could make you suffer even more since he figured that you cared about her!"

Every time I was reminded of that, it was like a jagged knife twisting in my chest. Her blood had been spilled, Skalidor and the _soncho _had doomed her to die—all because of me—_instead_ of me.

"I didn't _want_ to do it, but I had _no choice!_ He didn't care if she died right away, or not, because he _knew_ the arrow was poisoned, our _soncho_ had me poison it. But I couldn't bring myself to _kill_ her! I've never killed _anybody!_ That's why I hit her in the _leg!"_

Zane's hands on my shoulders tightened when my fists clenched harder and shook at my sides. "But you _still_ shot her down with an arrow loaded with poison! You _knew_ she'd be likely to die, and _slowly_, and you did it _anyway!"_

Hiro's reply, as well as his pleading countenance, were desperate. "I _told_ you_, _I_ had _to!The general and the _soncho_ threatened to harm _my family!_ I _had_ to do it to protect _**them! **_Don't you _understand?!"_

His last words were like cold water thrown into my face. I actually _did_ understand, since I, too, would do, and had done, _anything_ within my power to protect _mine._

My shoulders slumped in dispirited surrender under Zane's restraining hands, and he released me as I broke eye contact with Hiro and escaped toward our bath. "Let him go, Kai."

"But, he—"

"Let him _go!" _I repeated just before slamming the bathroom door behind me.

Throwing my clothes on the floor, I stamped to the lavatory and leaned on it, gripping both sides of the basin as I took deep breaths and stared at the man in the mirror, hating what he had wanted to do to the archer.

_Did you really wanna kill that kid?_

The bunkroom door to the corridor banged closed, preceded, I suspected, by Kai's frustrated exit, and it was quiet in there for a second before I heard Jay's short, light, slightly-nervous laugh. "You _seriously_ got lucky, kid! You don't know how close you just came to a _major_ ass whooping. But, honestly, if you had hit Nya, I don't know if I could have held myself back like the big guy just did. In fact, I don't think I would have _tried."_

_Yeah, I held back_.

But just barely. I had actually wanted to beat him to within an inch of his life for what he had done to Arwyn. But, to what end? To exact revenge, an eye for an eye?

This had all begun because I had slain the brothers of Acidicus in battle. From there, the Venomari general had vowed to avenge them, then died before he got a chance. After that, Skalidor had picked up the torch and was now looking to get to me through Arwyn.

If I took my fury and grief out on Hiro, I may think myself vindicated, but it was Skalidor, not the archer, who was the true root of the evil. He would still be out there, waiting to take his next turn in the vicious cycle.

At what point would it end? When _both_ of us were dead?

With a sigh, I ran a hand through my tousled hair and started stripping for a shower. I had no intentions of wasting my life running around Ninjago looking to settle a score. Arwyn was going to pull through this, and, like I'd told her father, Ryo, my mission was now to spend every one of the rest of my days making her happy.

_She __**has **__to pull through this…_

Or every one of the rest of my days would not be livable.

_[il mio cuore carissima… santo Dio, no=my dearest heart...holy God, no]_

**A/N: Just in case anyone thinks I overdid it with Cole and Kai's 'interrogation' of Hiro, keep in mind that Hiro is almost a man, and actually tried to kill Cole's beloved fiancée, who is also the Masters' teammate and the Green Ninja. In the canon, I believe they are unrealistically calm and almost apathetic in most situations like this. (Except for the absolutely ridiculous way Jay and Cole are fighting over Nya.) Here their reactions as real people with real emotions should be self-explanatory. I hope you agree. Let me know and have a terrific week!**


	7. Ripple Effects

**A/N: No Lego Ninjago checks are sent to me DX**

Thanks so very much to all my readers for reading (please continue!), but I express special gratitude to you awesome people who let me know I'm doing a decent job!

'Thank you!' to **ForestBornNinjaGirl** (I always love your enthusiastic responses!), **Anonymous** and **FireIce** (glad I had something you didn't see coming!), **Winter's Realm** (glad you're back, I need the critique!), **stupidvariousreasons** and **Coleswagger** (if I really had you near tears, there is no higher compliment!), and **CIRB** (love your interesting suggestions-we'll see what transpires)!

Not to assume the reader doesn't get it, but just to clarify the meaning of the title—'cause that's how I am, and I meant to do it earlier—'champion' in this case refers to a 'guardian' or 'knight', and everyone knows how often I referred to Cole in 'TP' as a knight (in shining armor, no less). And a 'bane' is, of course, a curse.

Please read and review!

_DESTINY'S BOUNTY_

****Cole's POV**

Fresh from the shower, I was on my way to Arwyn's room immediately after donning a long-sleeved raglan tee and clean gi pants. Although the ship was warm, I had chosen the long sleeves to avoid seeing the rusty smear of Arwyn's blood on my left arm every time I looked down at it.

The dried plasma had probably disappeared completely after just a few seconds of rubbing and rinsing, but I had spent at least a couple of minutes reddening my skin under the washcloth, and I would have sworn I could still see it.

It just wouldn't go away…

Anxiously wondering if there had been any improvement since I'd last seen Arwyn, I was only a few feet from her chamber when I heard Lloyd call my name from the dining-room doorway. Sighing, I stopped and watched him catch up to me.

Around his feet scampered that pesky little ball of fur who hurtled toward me as soon as he caught sight of me, bouncing on my bare feet and clawing at my knee. Lloyd's light scolding of him was largely ignored.

In his hands, Lloyd held a glass of iced tea and a plated, hot-roast-beef-and-cheese sandwich with fruit. Holding them out to me, he explained, "Zane said you probably wouldn't come to the dining room, but he wanted me to bring you this and tell you to put something in your stomach to feed those muscles."

Fabricating a smile, I waved him off and started to continue down the hall. "Thanks, buddy, but I don't feel much like eating…"

He didn't sound very put off behind me. "He said you'd say that, and to tell you that you could either eat it on your own, or he'd be force-feeding it to you later."

_Yeah, __**that**__ would be amusing enough to sell tickets…_

I hesitated, turning back to Lloyd, and obligingly put out my hands, letting him fill them with the plate and glass. Giving him the eye with a cocked brow, I informed him, "You can tell Master Julien that you accomplished your mission, but that I'm not gonna eat until I darn well _feel_ like it."

The grin that spread across his face told me he relished the idea of the conflict that might be playing out in the near future, but it was soon replaced with a more serious frown. "You're about to go in to see Arwyn. Can I come?"

After a sideways glance at him as I approached the door, I asked, "Why don't you just go in?"

"Uncle won't let me back in. He said she needs peace and quiet." He slumped against the wall by the doorframe. "I told him I'd be quiet, that she'd hardly know I'm there. Do you think you could get him to let me go in?"

I closed my eyes, guessing that Lloyd was probably being kept out of the room in case Arwyn's condition suddenly worsened. He didn't need to be traumatized by watching his cousin pass away.

Neither did I.

"Look, Lloyd, maybe Sensei's right, and you should stay outta there for just a while longer." His disappointed pout didn't agree with me. "Maybe find Kai and ask him to play video games or something?"

He shook his head. "I don't think Kai's much in the mood for that right now. He was awfully mad and yelling at Hiro while you were still in the shower. His fist even caught fire. Then he went up topside, and now nobody wants to bother him." I could understand why.

I knew why he was after the archer, but, "What did he say to Hiro?"

"Mostly that none of this would've happened to Arwyn if he hadn't let Hiro live in the tower, and he wished now that he hadn't."

_Crap._

The door opened, and Nya almost walked into me as she was exiting, giving me a chance to inquire about Arwyn. "How is she?" I hadn't been in there for nearly half an hour.

She grimaced slightly. "No improvement yet, but she's no worse, and she's sleeping, so she's not hurting. Sensei's meditating at the foot of her bed, so go in quietly." The petite brunette strolled down the hall, adding, "You should eat that. I'm going to see if there's anything left."

"You can have mine—"

"Eat. It."

Sending Lloyd and A-Cappella to the game room, I stole silently into Arwyn's room and placed the glass and plate on her dresser, defiantly thinking, _I'll eat later. _

On his tatami mat, Sensei sat as still as a stone in lotus, his eyes closed, scarcely breathing, the fingers of both hands forming the prana mudra for life and vital energy.

Arwyn was lying just as still in her bed, seeming unchanged since I'd been there last, but at least she was still with us. Wu and Nya had replaced the sheets I'd muddied and also changed the shirt of mine she had been wearing to—_another shirt of mine? When did she get a hold of the one I wore on our first date?_ I had wondered why I couldn't find that thing lately.

I wanted so much to stay there with Arwyn, lying next to her, watching her sleep. However, my sense of duty and concern for another friend had me deciding that I should probably go visit with _him_ for a few minutes first.

The mid-afternoon sky was still gun-metal grey, but it was no longer raining when I ascended to the bridge. There, I spotted Kai slumped in a chair at the table morosely twirling a short tantō on the smooth, varnished surface.

Taking a seat across from him, I leaned back in it and set my feet on the tabletop, hoping to appear relaxed, carefree, and nonchalant—everything I _wasn't._

"Hey."

The handle of the dagger spun in his skilled and nimble fingertips, the point of its blade drilled into the wood. Watching it reminded me of how lethal he could sometimes be, how fortunate I always felt to have him as a friend, not a foe.

He didn't bother to look up at me. "…Hey."

I stretched my arms lazily, putting my hands behind my head. "Lloyd said you had a little flare up."

"Unh."

As I lounged there, I checked out the strained facial features which were so in contrast to what I sometimes called 'Kai's happy hair'. He was usually in one of two primary moods: cocky, high spirits or fit to be tied. Worrying was something I never really thought he could do unless Nya was involved.

"We don't really need to lose another home to a fire. What brought _that _on?"

"Nothing."

I took in a view of the ceiling, wondering how hard I'd have to work for this, eager to get back to Arwyn. "Tell me, and get it over with."

For a moment, I thought he was gonna ignore me until I got bored and left, but then he suddenly caught the knife's leather-wrapped hilt in his fist and held it up, closely examining the keenly-honed blade from under furrowed brows.

"…It was _watching_ him…" His voice mimicked the tantō's steel—cold and deadly. "…and Zane was _feeding_ him_._ He's sitting there at _our_ table, eating _our_ food, while she's _dying_ down the hall!"

As unpredictable as the flames he controlled, Kai sent the weapon cutting across the bridge to skewer the wall beside the radar screen. _"He_ should be the one who's six feet under!"

_Can't truthfully say I disagree with you…_

Unruffled, I was hopeful that he'd found an outlet, and we'd get this settled _here,_ away from innocent bystanders. "What makes you say that?"

Kai stood and stalked to the wall to retrieve his blade. "If I had just taken care of him in the tower like I _should've_, _none_ of this would have happened, she'd be _okay!"_

Dropping my feet to the floor, I leaned my forearms on the tabletop, watching him. "You don't know that. There could have been another archer. You did the right thing by helping him out. You can say you're blameless, that you didn't cause another person's death—"

Angrily facing me, his obsidian eyes were like the stone—black and hard. Sweeping the fist which held the tantō out in a broad arc to point toward our quarters, he spat, "What _good_ is that doing _Arwyn?_ She's _still_ in the condition she's in! I let her down, I failed her, the _Green Ninja!_ And I failed _you!"_

_This is all about blame? I thought __**I**__ had the monopoly on that…_

"Kai, you didn't _fail_—" He turned his back to me and strode to the window, setting me off on another angle if he was refusing absolution and reassurance. "Okay, you're right. Go ahead and bear the guilt for that if you need to."

"While we're at it, _I've_ got the guilt for all the _rest _of it, for the very _fact_ that we went to Castor because of _my _selfish needs and got ambushed." I rose and walked to his end of the table, half-sitting on the edge of it and crossing my arms over my chest. "And then _**I**_ could've wasted Hiro in the tower just as well as _you_, but neither of us is like that, so I _didn't_."

"I didn't _have_ to give him the chance to get out of there with you, either, but I _did._ And then as far as the rest of it goes, if I didn't insist on being the defender of every little two-bit burg in Ninjago, Sensei never would've okay'd it, and we never would've gone to Sanctuary."

Kai stood stock-still as I stared at the back of his head covered with mahogany spikes and continued the list of things over which I had already chastised myself. "Arwyn never should've come with us. Skalidor never would have had a chance at us. Hiro never would've nocked an arrow."

"We'd have stayed home safe and sound. Zane would've cooked us a nice lunch, Jay would've finished swabbing the deck, and _you_ probably would've busted me _again_ feeling Arwyn up in another training room." His turned his head toward his shoulder with a little twitch.

"So, if you wanna _wallow_ in the guilt with me, that's _fine,_ but it's not changing history or doing us or Arwyn any good." Even though I kept repeating that to myself, I still didn't quite believe it. Maybe he would.

Turning back to me, Kai processed what I'd said with an amused lift of an eyebrow and an upturned corner of his mouth. "You did _not_ just say that part about the training room."

Though kinda surprised at myself, I had to be honest. "Yes, I did, 'cause that's pretty much how I'd planned on spending this rainy day."

He chortled, coming to stand by me. "When she makes it through this—_and she will_—I'll reserve the room and guard the door to keep _anybody_ from busting you." His hand went to my shoulder. "_Especially_ Sensei."

I couldn't bring myself to smile back at him. "You don't have to go _that_ far…but you promised she'd be okay." I stood up away from the table, preparing to make my exit now that the bomb was defused. "I expect you to make good on that."

Walking with me to the door, he replied solemnly, "You have my word." Letting me through first, he asked, "Now what do you want to do with Hiro?"

"Whoa. Don't tempt me into fantasizing about that!" I hit the steps down to the main deck. "How about we'll just both stay away from him until we know how Arwyn's gonna do, _then_ we'll decide."

"If you insist. But I _could_ make a few suggestions…"

In Arwyn's room a few minutes later, I saw that Sensei hadn't budged on his mat, and Nya joined the others in the game room once I came in. Zane was there checking on Arwyn, stating that she was stable, but not yet improved.

His hushed tone yearned to be reassuring, but his words were ambivalent and cautious. "We can only be patient and wait to see if the paralysis resolves over the next few hours."

On leaving the room, he spied my sandwich. "It also appears that you and I will be grappling later."

After he left, I lay on my side on the bed facing her, my head on the pillow next to hers, my hand lightly enfolding her fingers on her abdomen. I ached to hold her, but I didn't want to wake her if sleeping was helping the healing.

So I forced myself to be content with simply watching her, drinking in every angle of her face, every curve of her lips, every line around her eyes. I wanted to memorize every lash, every pore, every curl, even the scar on her cheek and her slightly-crooked nose.

Just in case.

I never wanted to forget anything about her, anything we'd done together, anything she'd ever told me.

I wanted to remember things like the way I'd hop out of bed before the alarm went off every morning so I could trot down the hall to be _her_ alarm clock and the first person she'd see and greet when she woke.

Or the times we'd played footsie under the dining table in secret, right under Sensei's nose.

Memories of how she always had me sample the marinara sauce she was working so hard to perfect to my taste. I usually had the luxury of receiving a kiss on the nose when I praised her for getting it oh-so-close to being like my Nonna's.

However, the last time I had wandered into the kitchen while she was cooking it, she hadn't asked me to take a bite. Instead, she had swallowed a spoonful, then backed me against the counter and kissed me deeply, treating me to a second-hand taste of the sweet-and-tangy sauce. I had to admit, it was almost _exactly_ like my Nonna's.

The _sauce,_ not the kiss.

My fingers tightened around hers, and I closed my eyes, suddenly seeing an oak sapling being hewn by my hands.

I had chosen it for its diameter, its knot-free surface, and the fact that it was as straight as an arrow to just the right height. Over the following week, I spent several hours working on it in my free time, most often when Arwyn was occupied elsewhere, stripping it of its bark, letting it dry a couple of days, then sanding it until it was as smooth as her kissable skin.

Then I got to the creative part—decorating it with carvings—something I'd never really done before that. Her name, the Masters' elemental symbols, and her snake spiraled around the staff. My initials were included on the end.

After sanding down all of the rough, carved edges, painting in the symbols and lettering, and sealing it, I'd proudly presented Arwyn with her own, custom-made bo.

She'd showered me with a ton of gratitude and praise that had me feeling like 'boyfriend of the year'. But then she'd used it for the first time during a sparring match with me and proceeded to emboss her name in backwards lettering on my posterior thigh.

I actually didn't mind that so much—once the worst of the stinging and throbbing faded—since I also got a lot of babying from my mugger afterwards. I even kinda liked having her name branded on me, but it eventually faded, too.

Feeling a tickle on the tip of my nose, I opened my eyes a crack to see that a strand of her hair was the offender. Her soft, fragrant hair. I loved to watch her twirling a dark, shiny lock absentmindedly between her fingers while she read, watched television, worked on the _Bounty's_ budget, talked to me, daydreamed.

A tress was also sometimes more vigorously pulled while we butted heads half-heartedly every week on the laundry day we shared. She insisted on doing Lloyd's laundry with hers since she thought the 'poor little guy' needed someone to take care of him given that his mother was AWOL.

I disagreed, arguing that, judging from past history, Garmadon's progeny was far from a 'poor little' _anything_ and _needed _the responsibility, that she should quit spoiling him.

I always seemed to lose that battle, however. The last one had been forfeited when she began hanging her lacy lingerie on the drying line while I was in the middle of a sentence, which left my _jaw_ hanging, and I _completely_ forgot what the heck I was even saying.

One of those pre-sleep jerks brought me wide awake when I hadn't even meant to let myself doze off, almost startling me into rolling off of the bed and onto the floor. I didn't want to sleep. I couldn't afford to waste any of my time with Arwyn.

_How much time do we have left together? How can I possibly survive if you're gone?_

Was the antidote working, or was she steadily slipping away from me as she slept?

_I can't lose you, babe…Please don't go…_

Slowly bringing myself up onto one elbow, I gazed down at her, savoring the sight. At least I hadn't woken her with that jolt, and, thank God, she still seemed to be holding her own.

Peering around the room, I noticed that Sensei had not yet left his post, and, behind him, the meal Zane had sent me still sat on the dresser. Next to it was a pleasant memory-jogger.

Once we had all settled down after our ordeal at the castle, Jay had somehow gotten into Arwyn's crushed cell phone and retrieved its data, including the selfie she had taken of us at her parents' home.

The color print she'd framed now sat on the dresser top. In it, we stood in the backyard, facing one another, beaming happily, my arms around her keeping her close to my bare chest.

Nearly thirty minutes before, I had been on my way back to the house with Zane after the barn-razing, sweaty, grimy, and ready for a shower. Arwyn had run up to us 'requesting' that she and I take a little walk first while she dragged me toward a lush grove of mature mulberry trees on the furthest end of the homestead.

Once we got there, we had moved from tree to tree, picking and eating some of the ripe berries, finally stopping under one in particular, at which point she had glided into my arms, tantalizingly running her hands over my damp and dust-covered chest and shoulders. Keeping an apprehensive eye out for her father almost made me miss what she was telling me.

It turned out that that was the spot where she'd shared her first kiss at fourteen with a sandy-blonde, sixteen-year-old boy from the town whom her father had hired to help him with the planting. My jealous curiosity had me asking for his name when she interrupted me, saying, "I want to forget him."

Cupping my face, she'd guided my very-accommodating lips to hers, and all thoughts of keeping my hands off of her for fear of pissing off her father flew from my mind.

There, under the mulberry heavily-laden with dark-purple fruit, we shared kiss after kiss, making the tree ours and ours alone, completely erasing its earlier history.

Zane had eventually sent Lloyd searching for us, and, on the way back to the house, Arwyn had mentioned that the farmhand hadn't shown up for work the morning after their encounter. Her father had indifferently explained to her mother that the teen had decided to take another job with a merchant, since he apparently wasn't up to doing farm work.

_Call me suspicious, but I doubt very seriously that the kid quit that job—and the farmer's daughter—voluntarily…_

That thought and the sweet, enticing memory of being with Arwyn brought forward the first true smile I'd been able to summon that day since learning about Sanctuary. Drifting without direction, my viewpoint caught Sensei's anxious stare.

"Is there any change?"

I looked down into my fiancée's pallid face as she slumbered, watched her shallow breathing, and was pulled back into our grim reality. "I can't tell. She's still sleeping."

Disheartened, he came to sit on the edge of the bed on the other side of Arwyn, where he began to slowly run his hand up and down her arm. For lack of anything else to do, I made myself busy idly straightening the collar of my apricot rayon shirt where it lay around her neck.

Neither of us could come up with anything to say, and a heavy stillness draped over and around us like a melancholy pall for several minutes. At last I tore through it with a blunt confession concerning something that had suddenly started eating at me.

"If this antidote doesn't work… I don't know what I'll do, Sensei."

Not lifting his saddened eyes from his daughter, Wu nodded slowly, as if he understood me_. "All_ our lives would change…"

I shook my head, keeping Arwyn in my view. "That wasn't exactly what I meant." There was something that had recently imposed itself into my thoughts, something I wasn't planning, hadn't actually thought about _how_ to do, but…

"I don't know if I could…live. Or if I'd _want_ to."

The concept of going back to living a life _without_ Arwyn had become incomprehensible to me.

_I don't think there's any way I could do it…_

Fully grasping my meaning, my mentor's narrowed gaze latched onto me, his tone was precise and adamant. "You could not _dare_ to contemplate ending what you _know _she would want you to _continue."_

My thought process seemed to make all the sense in the world to me as I unblinkingly met his disturbed look and countered softly, "Maybe…but what would be the point of continuing… if my heart was gone?" I brought my attention back to Arwyn. "It would be too painful."

My grave admission seemed to echo around the room, darkening the shadows. For a couple of minutes, a charged silence dominated as we both regarded the woman who lay between us, who meant so much to both of us.

Wu finally replied, "I understand how you would feel that way. I felt the same when her mother, Mavé, passed, and more so when I had to leave Arwyn as a baby in Miyagi."

Dipping my head, I felt a sudden wave of shame come over me. Here I was, ready to give up on my life with just the _threat_ of losing Arwyn looming before me. Just how weak _was_ I?

In comparison, Wu had lost his soul mate to a terminal illness and had given away his only child to kind strangers in order to insure her safety and well-being. Yet, he had still soldiered onward, determined to go on with his life's work, following his calling to protect the people of Ninjago from his brother's evil intentions.

I immediately regretted exposing my fatalistic, self-pitying notions to him. "I'm sorry, Sensei. I forgot that _you_ had suffered that way… and would suffer yet again."

"Do not be sorry." The son of the First Spinjitzu Master gave a little wave of his hand. "I do not expect you to keep a history of my pains. You have enough of your own with which to be concerned."

His next remark was more like an order. "And entertain those thoughts of yours no longer."

With one more loving look at Arwyn, he caressed her temple, murmuring, "She looks so like her mother…" After a moment, he took a deep breath and made ready to leave the room. "I will steep us some tea to partake while we wait for her to wake."

He paused at the door, his hand on the wooden frame. "We must also think of informing Ryo and Sora, regardless of the outcome."

I cringed at the thought of delivering the news of Arwyn's illness—or worse—to her adoptive parents. Their greatest fear for her would be realized, and I would have to admit to them that I was not able to shelter her.

Filing away that unpleasant chore for later consideration, I nodded to Wu before he headed for his quarters. Lowering my head back to the pillow, I took her hand in mine once again and burrowed my face into the lush waves near her neck.

I'm not sure how many minutes crawled by as I lay quietly beside Arwyn, breathing in her familiar scent and offering up grateful prayers of thanksgiving for the blessed antidote. For the umpteenth time, I begged that it would work—completely and swiftly.

Lost in thought, my mind failed to register the delicate touch on my forearm through my sleeve until I heard the throaty whisper by my ear. _"Sono affamato. Che cosa è…per cena?" _{I'm hungry. What's…for supper?}

_Arwyn?!_

My head bolted up from the pillow when I realized it was the voice of my lover. Eyes wide in shock, I stared with hope into her half-lidded ones.

She grinned slowly, questioningly. "Did I say that right? I wanted to say 'I'm dying of hunger', but I couldn't think of the correct form of the verb."

Stunned, relieved, overjoyed, I could only stutter, "Ohmigod! Y-Yes! A-_Anything_ you say is right! _Anything!_ Say something else! _Say anything!"_

Feeling like I was gonna hyperventilate, with my heart thundering in my chest, I swiped at the tears blurring my vision which almost made it impossible for me to see her beautiful, smiling face.

My shaking hands were all over her, her face, her shoulders, her arms. I couldn't stop myself from touching her, from kissing her, and she returned all of my ecstatic gestures.

I was trembling so much that it sounded in my voice. "You're t-talking! Y-You're moving! Y-You're _better!_ Ohmigod, thank God, you're better!"

Although her laughter at my reaction was tired, it was still lighthearted, until I caused her to grunt a bit when I scooped her up from the bed and squeezed her to me, jostling her in the process. In my excitement, the arrow wounds to her leg had been pushed to the back of my mind.

I quickly relaxed my hold on her, throwing back the quilt to examine the dressing covering her thigh. "I'm _so_ sorry! I didn't mean to hurt you!"

"It's _okay_…calm down." Her look of pain eased while her hand patted my neck comfortingly. "I'm just glad to see you _happy_ again."

"I love you so much, my life's heart! You just don't _know_ how worried I've been!"

"I love you more…And I can imagine…"

_Of course_… I mentally smacked myself in the forehead when I recalled our reunion in the tower and how she had been so overcome with emotion when she saw I had _not _been killed in the Serpentine ambush.

She let me hold her for a few more precious moments as I convinced myself of the fact that she really was alright. But then, with her head on my shoulder, she finally spoke up somewhat sheepishly. "Baby, a couple of things—I wasn't kidding about being hungry, and… I would _definitely_ appreciate getting a lift to the bathroom."

**A/N: Ending this chapter on a positive note since I think the following chapters will not be. There's more bane to come for our champion! Please review! Later!**


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